Unhappy Father's Day
by Blackspiderman
Summary: Isabella's father fails to show up for Father's Day yet again, and a terrible secret is revealed! She goes on a search for him with Phineas and Ferb right behind her. Meanwhile, Doofenshmirtz tries to enjoy Father's Day with Vanessa. Rated K for safety.
1. Prologue

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Prologue**

**FanFiction Summary: Isabella's dad has always been a mystery to everyone. Isabella never really cared, though, because she felt that she already had everything she needed. But when another annual Fireside Girls Father/Child picnic comes around, and she ends up unable to participate in the festivities once again, she is pushed over the edge and a horrible secret is revealed. This sets the course for Phineas, Ferb, & Isabella's biggest adventure ever as they set out to find the truth! Meanwhile, Dr. Doofenshmirtz tries to ruin Father's Day for everyone else so his celebration with Vanessa will be "Better by default" and somehow it ends up mixing in with Isabella's journey. Trust me, story is much better than the summary makes it sound.**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't expect any good original songs! Sorry, but I'm not good with writing original songs. Never have been.**

* * *

_(Cue Flashback)_

**_December 24th, 1999; 7:05 p.m._**

_It was the dead of night. There was not a single star nor cloud in the sky, and everybody on the block was supposed to be asleep. But the sounds of sirens kept everybody on the block awake. The ambulances surrounded the Garcia-Shapiro home. The paramedics rushed out of their vehicles into the home, and loaded Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro onto their stretcher. She was already in labor, giving birth to a new baby girl._

_"OK, Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro, we're on our way to the hospital right now. Just keep breathing." One paramedic said. She was loaded into the back of one of the ambulances. Her husband, Mr. Shapiro (who, by this point in the episode, would not have his face or any part of his body revealed to the camera), who was shaking violently with fear, was led into the same ambulance with his wife. "Mr. Shapiro, I need you to stay with me here. Your wife needs your support right now."_

_"Oh jeez, I d-don't-I don't know if I can do this." He quivered being led to the ambulence. "Oh this is all too scary."_

_"Sir, I need you to stay calm. Your wife needs you now more than ever. For pete's sake, she's about to give birth!"_

_The ambulances all drove off to the hospital at a break-neck pace. There wasn't much time until the delivery. They arrived at the hospital moments later and immediately got Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro into a delivery room._

_"OK, Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro, we're all set here. Now push!" The doctor readied himself to deliver Vivian's baby, while Mr. Shapiro helplessly watched from behind a glass window, feeling that if he went into the room to support his wife, he would throw up. And he almost did that night...about 5 times._

_The delivery process was a bit painful and it almost didn't work. But after 5 long, grueling hours, at exactly midnight on December 25th, 1999, Vivian Garcia-Shapiro successfully delivered a new baby girl into the world. After she was finished crying, they cut her umbilical cord and walked over to Vivian._

_"Congratulations, Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro." Said one of the doctors, handing the new mother her beautiful baby. The baby girl smiled at her new mother as Vivian beamed with joy. Mr. Shapiro had finally gotten the guts to go inside and see his new daughter (after he had thrown up all his guts in the first place)_

_"Oh my stars, she's so beautiful." Vivian beamed to her husband._

_"She really is, isn't she?"_

_"Have you folks thought of a name yet?" One of the doctors asked them._

_"Oh yes. Yes we have." Mr. Shapiro was the first to answer. He and Vivian had been arguing over what to name their child for a while now. They had several different names ready for whether it was a boy or a girl._

_"Are you sure about this?"_

_"I've never been more sure of anything in my life." He turned back to the doctor._

_"So what's it gonna be?"_

_They both looked at the doctor, and then at their new baby. Then they smiled at each other as Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro answered the doctor for him. "Isabella. Isabella Garcia-Shapiro." The new baby giggled as the new parents laughed. "Merry Christmas, Isa."_

_(End Flashback)_

**_June 18, 2009; 8:30 pm - Three Days before Father's Day._**

"And that's the story of how you were born, mijita." Vivian said to her daughter, tucking her under her blankets as she cuddled her Phineas plush doll.

"Wow, mom. That story gets better and better every time you tell it to me." Isabella giggled. "Hey, mom, what do you suppose ever happened to my dad?"

"Well..." Vivian stuttered and hesitated to answer. "I don't know, Isa. Things happen for a reason, and...sometimes, we just can't explain those reasons. I wish I had the answers, Isa. But I just don't."

"That's OK, mom. I know wherever he is, he's watching me." She looked to her dresser and saw a picture of the three of them. Her, her mom, and her father, who had a red fro hairdo, a green sweater vest, blue sweatpants, and shoes on. They all looked so happy together. "I still wish I got to see him more often. It's hard not to have a dad living with you."

"I'm sure it is, but you have me, Isa. And you have the most wonderful friends in the world."

That word struck a chord for Isabella. "Yeah. Friends." She really wanted to tell Phineas how she felt about him, but she didn't want it to end a wonderful friendship she had with him.

"Don't fret, Isa. Phineas'll come around someday."

"I hope so, mom." She turned on her side and almost instantly fell asleep. "Goodnight, mom."

"Sweet dreams, mijita." Her mother said one more time before she kissed her daughter on the forehead and left the room, shutting the light behind her. Isabella immediately had wonderful dreams about what it would be like if she and Phineas were married. That always made her happy, being with Phineas.

_(Cue Dream)_

_**June 25th, 2002; 10:39 p.m.**_

_It was the night of Father's Day. Isabella was now less than 3 years old and was now asleep in her bed, having just had a wonderful time with her mom and dad, and her new friends, Phineas, and his stepbrother, Ferb. Phineas and Ferb were also in the same bed as her, as their sleeping bags had gotten ruined earlier._

_Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro was in the bathroom, while Mr. Shapiro was in the kitchen going through some mail. "OK, let's see here. Bill, bill, bill, half off at Slushy Burger -- ooh, that's a keeper. Bill, bill, wait! What's this?" He looked closely at the last letter, and cringed at just what it said. "Oh dear." He opened the letter and started reading it, and was shocked and apalled with what it said. He sighed in defeat. "I was afraid this day would come."_

_So with a heavy heart, he knew he had no choice but to pack up his things and leave. So he went into his and Vivian's room, packed his clothes, some old family photos, a couple of his posessions, and about $2,500 in cash, and started making his way back to the front door._

_By this time, Isabella was now awakened from a need to drink something. So she grabbed her blanket along with her teddy bear, jumped out of bed, and started walking towards the kitchen to get a glass of water. It was when she got into the kitchen that she noticed there was someone walking towards the door. She was surprised to find that it was her dad. "Daddy?" She said as she walked into the living room right before he was about to leave. "Where are you going?"_

_The man turned around to see his little girl standing there with her blanket in one hand and her teddy bear in another hand. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. Daddy has to go away for awhile."_

_"But...why?"_

_Mr. Shapiro put his suitcase down and walked over to her daughter. He picked her up and hugged her tightly. "I can't tell you, Isabella. You wouldn't understand right now. I'm going away for a while, and I don't know how long I'll be gone. Or...if I'll ever come back. But just know this. I will always love you." He kissed the girl on her forehead, put her on the couch, picked up his luggage, and walked out the front door, not taking a final glance back at his daughter, who sat there on the couch, with her stuff in her hands._

_Vivian then came into the room having come out of the bathroom. She had just missed out on Mr. Shapiro leaving, and was curious as to why Isabella was sitting on the couch looking out the window. "Isa, why are you out of bed? It's late, honey."_

_The girl turned to face Vivian, with tears forming in her eyes. It was only then that Vivian caught sight of the letter he read before he left on the table. She picked it up and read it, and finally understood what had happened. "Daddy left, mommy."_

_"I see, pumpkin. I see." Vivian didn't know how Isabella would react, but she could tell that she was confused and very hurt._

_"When is he coming back?" The little girl asked her mother._

_"I'm not sure, sweetheart. But I think I should take you back to bed. It's really late."_

_"No! I wanna wait here for daddy to come back!" Isabella protested by crossing her arms and pouting. Normally, she would obey her mother when she told her to do something, but she loved her dad so much that she would stand by and wait for him no matter how long it took. Vivian knew she couldn't argue against her daughter on this one, so she simply let it be._

_And so Isabella sat on the couch, waiting for her dad to return home. Little did she know that he wasn't coming back. But that didn't stop her._

_So she waited...and waited...and waited...the hours passed by quickly as Isabella ketp watching out the window. Her eyes started drooping after about an hour and a half, but still, she wouldn't give in to the temptation of wonderful slumber._

_But at 1:20 am, she couldn't keep her eyes open any longer, and at last, she collapsed onto the couch and fell asleep. Her mother came in and saw that Isabella was asleep. So she tucked her in under her blanket, and cradled her with her teddy bear. She could tell she was very hurt and didn't want to wake her._

_(End Dream)_

The next morning, at about 7 a.m, Isabella found herself sleeping on the couch near the front door again. She rubbed her eyes and looked around. Every single year around this time, Isabella would mysteriously sleepwalk towards the front door and sleep on the couch, as if she was instinctively waiting for her dad to return home.

"Isa, honey, what are you doing sleeping on the couch?" Vivian asked entering the living room.

"I-I'm not sure, mom."

"You were probably sleepwalking again."

"Why does this keep happening to me, mom?"

"Oh, mijita, you just miss your dad, that's all. And I can understand that, especially around this time."

"What are you talking about?"

"Isa, this Sunday is Father's Day."

"Oh, yeah. That's right! Wait, then that means...this weekend is the Fireside Girls' annual Father/Child picnic...which..." Her mood lit up and then fell. "...I won't be able to participate in...again." According to the official Fireside Girls handbook, a child could not be present at the location of the Fireside Girls' Father/Child picnic unless they had their father present with them, something Isabella never had.

"I know you're disappointed. But cheer up. You still have all of your friends."

"I suppose so."

* * *

Isabella quickly got dressed into her Fireside Girl uniform and quickly went over to the Danville Park for her Fireside Girls meeting today. Her troop members were already there with their dads, and everything was set up for the picnic, from the stage to the many carnival games to the refreshments, even the entertainment. (Schlocko the Clown from **Cheer up, Candace**, the ventriloquist Jeff Dunham, Jeff Foxworthy, & some old maid with a horrible spanish accent named Consuela *hint hint*.)

"I hereby call this meeting of the Fireside Girls to order." Isabella said as she banged her gavel officially starting the meeting. "Is everything set up for the Fireside Girls' annual Father/Child picnic?"

"Check!" All the girls shouted at once.

"Well let's just make sure. Game booths?"

"Check!" Milly shouted.

"Entertainment?"

"Check!" Katie called out.

"Refreshments?"

"Check!" Holly shouted.

"Music for the Father/Child dance?"

"Check!" Adyson called.

"OK then. It looks like we're all set. And I see you all brought your dads with you. Very cool." She lied. Deep down, she was very jealous that everyone's dad but hers was there.

"My dad and I set up the game booths." Milly said pointing to one of them, which read "Ring Toss". "That's where my dad won me my stuffed giraffe 3 years ago."

"Yeah. I sure remember that." Isabella sighed, remembering how she got to play that and Isabella couldn't.

"My dad and I booked that entertainment. We got a clown, a ventriloquist, and a spanish chick." Katie said proudly. "My dad used his own money to buy the entertainment last year when we got Howie Mandel to entertain us."

"Of course. How could I forget that!?" Isabella was starting to cringe, hearing all of these past memories of festivities she couldn't be a part of.

"I remember last year too!" Adyson called out. "That's when my dad and I were able to set up the advetisement for this event. You know, with the blimps, and the flyers, and the billboards. I even got us a commercial on CBS!"

Isabella's temper and emotions were starting to get the best of her. She clentched her fists in the hopes that she wouldn't have an outburst, but that seemed harder and harder with each passing second. She also shut her eyes tightly, which nobody seemed to notice.

"And then we were also able to get the Mayor of Danville to spread the word through his mayoral speeches...and..."

"Oh put a sock in it, Adyson!!" Isabella finally barked into her fellow troop member's face, which surprised everyone, even the dads. "Do you know how hard it is to listen to you girls rant on and on and on about the fun you have with you daddies while I'm forced to sit on the sidelines every single year because my dad doesn't even bother to show up!?"

"Isabella, we didn't--"

"Do you know how hard it is!? It's-It's hard! Very, very hard!" She started to tear up. "I'm sick of it! I'm so sick of having to watch you guys have fun and I don't get a chance to join in the festivities! Why can't _I_ have fun for once!? Why can't _my_ dad come out to one of these stupid festivals for once!? I want my daddy! Is that too much to ask!? I want my daddy!!" Now she was starting to cry. "I WANT MY DADDY!!! WAAAAH!" With that, she had finally broken, and rushed off the stage back home to cry in her room. Her fellow troop members and their dads watched on and felt so much sympathy for her.

**End of Prologue.**

**Yes, so sad. I know. But don't worry. It gets better. This is just the beginning!**

**Next Time: A shocking secret about Isabella's dad is revealed.**

**Expected Update: Between December 18th and December 20th.**


	2. Will The Real Dad Please Rise?

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Chapter 1: Will The Real Dad Please Rise?**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't get your hopes up for any good original songs. I might give it a shot, but it might not be that good.**

* * *

Isabella ran right back home, barged into her room, and crashed right onto her bed. She sobbed very loudly into her pillow, the tension of the fact that she never got to be a part of the festivities had finally gotten to her. She was so hurt, and so sad that she couldn't bear to be around any of it anymore.

She grabbed an old family photo of her and her dad, and looked at it for a long while, wiping away tears streaming down her face. "Oh daddy, where are you?" She said to nobody. "I wish I'd get to see you every year! I just want to be able to join in the good times like all of my other friends around this time of year!"

Tears dripped onto that picture as she put it aside. There was barely anything that could get her out of this state of severe depression. Not even the sounds of her loyal companions knocking at the door could cheer her up.

"Isabella, open up!" Gretchen shouted to Isabella over her crying, knocking on her door. "It's us! Your loyal Fireside Girls!"

"Come on, troop leader! You can talk to us! We're your friends!" Holly added.

"Go away! I don't want to talk about it right now!" She screamed at the top of her lungs to her Fireside Girls troop outside. She then resumed crying, which made them even more worried about her.

"But Isabella, we're worried about you. You've never acted like this before!"

"That's because I never realized just how lonely I truly was without my dad here! All of you get to have fun at that picnic, but I don't! It's not fair!" She wasn't lying. She truly felt left out when this picnic came every year, and everyone there understood it.

"Man, how are we going to talk some sense into her?" Katie inquired which got the other girls thinking, too. During their thoughts, Isabella's other friends, Phineas, Ferb, Buford, & Baljeet showed up.

"Hey guys." Phineas immediately said, which snapped them out of it.

"Phineas and Ferb! Thank goodness you guys are here!" Gretchen said with all of the girls agreeing immediately. They soon preceeded to explain the situation to the boys, which took a good few minutes. But it was time well spent, as now Phineas, Ferb, Buford, and Baljeet understood why Isabella was sobbing uncontrollably in her room.

Phineas slowly approached the door, Isabella's crying getting louder and louder with each step he took. It just broke his heart to see, er, rather hear his best friend cry like this. His loving and caring personality compelled him to comfort her and make her feel better. He knocked on the door loudly three times, and waited for the noise to die down a bit. "Isabella? Isabella, it's Phineas."

Isabella looked up with her water-filled eyes, and knew that voice immediately. "P-Phineas? It's really you. What are you doing here?"

"The Fireside Girls explained everything to me and Ferb. Isabella, please open the door. I want to talk to you. We all want to talk to you. We want to make you feel better."

"No! Phineas, you can never understand the pain I go through!"

"What do you mean? Come on, you have to talk to me! I'm your best friend. Remember when Santa deemed everybody naughty and I felt like it was my fault? You did everything you could to try and make me feel better about it. Now, I want to do the same thing for you."

Isabella pondered on that for a moment. She could never forget that Christmas. But she was still pretty upset about this. "I still don't want to talk about it right now!"

"That's cool. We don't have to talk about it right away! We could talk about...uh, sports. Or professional wrestlers. Or ponies. Or-"

He stopped himself in his tracks when he heard something in Isabella's room. It was Isabella approaching her door and unlocking it from the inside. "Not yet." She said, stopping everyone from barging into her room at once. She went back onto her bed and laid down on her back. "OK, you can come in."

Phineas slowly turned the knob on the door and opened it, and saw the distraught and angry girl. Her eyes were red from crying, her hair was messed up, and her clothes were a bit wrinkled. They all slowly entered her room, careful not to upset her. "Hi guys." She said kindly to all of her friends. They all piled around her bed, while Phineas took a seat on it. "Hi Phineas."

"Hi Isabella."

"What are you doing here?"

"Your mom gave our mom and call and she explained everything to us." He placed a comforting hand on Isabella's shoulder, and wiped away tears from her eyes with his other hand. "Come on, Isabella. Cheer up. I hate to see you so upset. It just breaks my heart."

"I-I can't cheer up, Phineas! My dad hasn't com visit me in over 7 years! Do you know what that feels like?" Bad question, considering Phineas and Ferb's dad, Lawrence, wasn't actually Phineas's birth father, which Isabella just remembered. "Oh, right. You do."

"Well I can't really say that for sure, Isabella. I mean, Ferb's dad...he's kinda grown on me. I treat him and love him like any other dad. But _you_, Isabella, haven't seen or heard from your dad since you were a baby. That's got to hurt."

"It does, Phineas. Believe me, it tears me to shreds."

"I don't think I'll ever be able to say that I feel your pain. But I just want you to know that I'm always going to be here to feel it with you. We're all here to feel it with you. That's what friends are for." Isabella buried her head into Phineas's shirt while Phineas wrapped his arms around her neck, comforting her even more. She started to give a little smile, though tears still ran down her face.

"I miss him so much. I do."

"I know, Isabella. And it's OK. It's OK that you miss him."

The two pulled away as she wiped more tears away. "And...to my Fireside Girls, I'm sorry for snapping at you before. I let my rage get the better of me."

"That's OK. It happens." Adyson assured her. "We just want to make sure you're OK. It isn't like you to get upset the way you did. You're always so outgoing and peppy, so seeing you upset was a bit of a surprise for us."

"I'm sorry. I wasn't mad at any of you guys. You're all such great friends."

Soon they all piled in and gave Isabella a giant group hug, which made all of them happy. Well, everyone except Buford. "Sorry, I don't do group hugs."

"Well, Isabella, we have to get back to the park to finish setting up for the picnic. You're welcome to come help us if you want." Gretchen said to her fellow girl scout troop leader.

"Nah, I don't think I should. Chances are I'll probably get upset again."

"OK. But feel free to drop by if you change your mind." All of the Fireside Girls, along with Buford & Baljeet, left the room, leaving only Phineas & Ferb there.

"Wow, Isabella. I gotta say if I went through what you went through, I don't know what I'd do."

"It's OK. You get used to it. But still, I miss him." She grabbed a picture off of her dresser and held it close to her. Phineas leaned in to get a closer look. Suddenly a lightblub went off in Phineas's head.

"Wait a minute...who exactly is that man?" He asked her which caused her to look at him and start glaring angrily.

"What do you mean!? That's my dad!"

"Uh, no it's not, Isabella. I remember that your dad never had red hair. His hair was always raven-black, just like yours."

"But...but that can't be. This picture was taken on my 3rd birthday! And my dad left when I was 2! So then...that would mean..." The girl took another long look at the picture, and then thought back to that fateful night when her dad left her. "Phineas, could it be true?"

"I don't know, Isabella."

"W-Well, maybe my dad just changed his looks. You know, people do that all the time. Just look at Lindsay Lohan!"

"I highly doubt that, Isabella. It's one thing to just change your looks. But this guy doesn't even remotely look like the dad that I remember you having. I mean, your dad always wore glasses. But this guy looks like he has 20/20 vision!"

"Well...uh..."

"And your dad used to have a mustache. This guy doesn't."

"That could mean anything!"

"Plus, your dad had blue eyes. This guy has green eyes."

"Oh you pay too much attention to detail!"

"And you clearly don't pay enough attention."

The girl took one last look at the picture. "This can't be true. It just can't be."

* * *

Isabella, Phineas, and Ferb decided that Isabella should go talk to her mother about this whole mess. But Isabella wasn't too comfortable with talking to her mother about this situation. So the two boys assured her that they would be right there beside her the entire time.

Phineas Flynn ran home quickly and got an old picture of them to show to her. The picture had Phineas, Ferb, Isabella, Candace, Linda, Lawrence, and Isabella's dad in it. Isabella's dad, like Phineas described, had glasses, a short, black mustache, short, black hair, and was wearing a baige suit.

The girl quietly walked downstairs, with Phineas & Ferb behind her. Her mother was reading a newspaper in the kitchen. Isabella gulped and approached her, holding one of the pictures.

"Mom..." She said quietly, even whimpering a little. "Can I talk to you about something?"

"Of course, Isa. You can talk to me about anything." Her mother said compassionatly, putting down her newspaper. The three kids took their seats and stared Vivian down, though not viciously. "What's the matter, honey?"

Isabella handed her a picture of her and her dad (the "fake" dad). Vivian studied it for a moment, and looked at her daughter for a moment. "I miss my dad so much."

Vivian gulped and looked at her daughter for a moment. Those adorable puppy-dog eyes drew her attention. "I know you do, sweetheart. I know it's hard, but you still have me. And you also have all of your friends."

"Yeah...there's that. And there's also..." She took the picture Phineas had and showed Vivian. "This guy. Whoever he is." Vivian looked at the man in the picture, and then at Isabella. None of the kids showed an angry face towards her, only concern and curiosity. Vivian was hoping she could continue the charade she had been pulling for years, but it seemed like she would only be making things worse. "Mom...who is this guy?"

She sighed. "I knew this day would come. But I was hoping not for another few years. But now, I see that I can't hold out on it any longer. OK, Isa. Here is the truth." The mother took in a deep breath and faced the three children. "When your father left many years ago, I decided that you still needed a man in your life to guide you through difficult times when you grew up. So I began dating again. The first couple of months were rough, but then I met this nice young man. His name was Tony, and he was such a wonderful man."

"He was optimistic, caring, just like you, Isa. I figured he would be perfect for you. So we gave it a try, and for a while, it seemed to work. You were so happy, and I was happy. But then...something happened."

"Yeah. _He_ left too. Jerk."

"Actually, he was coming home from work and he died in a car accident. I simply said that he took a job in Alaska and never came back so you wouldn't get upset again."

"Upset again!? Mom, he was the second dad to walk out on me! I honestly thought he was my real dad, and then _this_ happens!"

"Isa, honey, I never meant to hurt you! I tried to stop you from hurting!"

"Well it worked up until this point!" She was getting mad now. "So, what happened to my real dad!? Where is he!?"

"At this point in time, I can't really say for sure. The last time I talked to him was about 3 years ago, and by then, he was living in the Big Apple.

"You mean New York City? Wow, that's actually not that far from here. But wait, if he's been this close to us for so long, why hasn't he come visit?"

"I'm afraid that's where my knowledge ends, Isa. If you want more, you'd have to go find him and ask him yourself. But, I don't think that's such a good idea."

"But mom, I haven't seen him in over 7 years! I think I should get to see him in person at least once in my life!"

"I know, and I feel horrible about all of this. But Shapiroville is a dangerous city. It's like New York, except without the blind senator. Isa, I warn you. It's a hectic city, and if you go in alone, you probably won't come back out." She got up, kissed her daughter on her forehead, and then went upstairs, leaving the three children there to think. Isabella's mind was racing with thoughts. Plus, it was getting late, so she decided to turn in for the night, as Phineas & Ferb stood up and left.

* * *

But getting a good night's sleep after the kind of day that Isabella has had was much easier said than done. In fact, through half of the night, Isabell had a hard time staying asleep for a long period of time. She kept having dreams that her dad was nothing more than a selfish jerk who didn't care about her at all. These dreams frightened her to the point of her almost wetting the bed.

After many attempts to get back to sleep, Isabella decided that she wouldn't be getting any sleep anytime soon, and decided to wait it out. It was already 1 o' clock in the morning. _Dad, where are you? I miss you so much._ Isabella thought to herself. _I wish mom had told me the truth from the start. Now I'm even more confused than I ever was._

She looked at the picture on her dresser of her and this "Tony" guy Vivian told her about. _I have to know the truth. I just have to._ She got out of bed and started getting dressed into her regular clothes, consisting of a white shirt, pink dress, and pink shoes. She felt that if she didn't do this now, she would never do it. She would never see her real dad again, she would never know the truth, and more importantly, she would never get to participate in the Fireside Girls' Father's Day Picnic.

She packed herself a couple of days worth of clothes, snacks & drinks, & coloring books to keep herself busy, all into a small, pink backpack she had in her room that she used for school. Afterwards, she started writing a letter of explaination to her mother, which told in detail exactly what Isabella was planning on doing. She choked up with every letter she wrote down.

After she did that, she taped it onto her dresser, and then pulled out her cellphone. She started dialing Phineas's cell number. She knew this could be the last time she ever saw him or spoke to him.

Of course, Phineas, along with her stepbrother, were sound asleep in their beds, so he didn't bother to pick up his phone. Instead, he got his answering machine.

_Hey. You've reach Phineas Flynn. Leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. Oh, and yes, I am too young to own a cellphone._

She took in a deep breath and waited for the thing to beep before starting to talk. "Phineas, i-it's me, Isabella. Listen, today's been really hectic for me. I mean, I just found out that the man that I thought was my real dad was a phony, and my real dad's living somewhere out in New York City. I don't want this Father's Day to end up like my last 6. You know, with me being the only one without a date for the picnic. So...I've decided that I'm going into the Big Apple in search of my real dad. I figured that if anything, I deserve some answers."

"But there's something that I need to get off of my chest before I go, and I hope you get this message, because it's about you, Phineas. I'm in love with you. I have had a huge crush on you since I was 3. I mean, you're so smart, loving, selfless, and your generosity towards everyone else...it's all just so amazing. I love everything about you, Phineas. I always have. I just wasn't sure if you felt the same way about me, and that's why I didn't tell you. I'll always love you, Phineas Flynn. I hope we get to see each other again real soon."

And with that, she closed her cellphone, and wiped away some tears from her eyes.

**End of Chapter 1!**

**Wow! An update on my birthday! How incredible! Read & Review!**

**Next Time: Phineas finds out, and thus, he & Ferb's biggest adventure ever starts! Meanwhile, Doofenshmirtz attempts to ruin Father's Day.**

**Expected Update: Between December 22nd and December 24th.**


	3. To New York or Bust!

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Chapter 2: To New York or Bust!**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't get your hopes up for any good original songs. I might give it a shot, but it might not be that good.**

* * *

"_You're so smart, loving, selfless, and your generosity towards everyone else...it's all just so amazing_."

The next morning at 6:00 a.m., Phineas had awakened and gotten out of bed to give Isabella a call. But when he dialed her home phone number, Vivian answered it, and was crying loudly into the phone. It was only a moment ago that Vivian had discovered that Isabella was gone, and that the note was left on her dresser. The note explained how Isabella was going to New York City to find her dad, and how she called Phineas's cellphone and left him a message confession her affections for him. That's what Phineas & Ferb were listening to right now, and Phineas was completely stunned.

_"I love everything about you, Phineas. I always have. I just wasn't sure if you felt the same way about me, and that's why I didn't tell you. I'll always love you, Phineas Flynn."_

The red-haired boy closed his cellphone and breathed out in distress. What he had just heard shocked the heck out of him. "I can't believe this, Ferb. Isabella's gone."

"Oh don't be so hard on yourself. You were oblivious. Most boys your age are supposed to be."

"Yeah, but the signs were all there. I mean, now that I think about it...all those times she said stuff like "You had me at our grandchildren" or that time she cut out those little bits of paper in the shape of my head with little hearts in between, or when she asked me to that dance...she was trying to tell me something, and I missed it. I feel so awful." He pulled out an old picture of him and Isabella sitting together. They looked so happy together. "And now she's somewhere out in the Big Apple looking for a man who might not even be alive anymore."

"Ferb, what if she gets lost in the big city and nobody can find her? And she gets seriously hurt...or worse. If that were to happen, I don't think I'd ever be able to forgive myself."

"I know it isn't my fault. But...you know, when you care for someone as much as...as I care for Isabella, you can't help but blame yourself for whatever happens to them. She's my best friend in the whole, wide world, Ferb, and I would do anything to make sure she's OK."

He looked down at his wrist, staring at his wrist watch, which had Isabella's face on it. He had that made for him when they first met when they were just over a year old. Isabella has a watch with Phineas's face on it.

_**Without you in my life  
It seems so empty  
My best friend is a girl. Is that so wrong?  
I have your face upon my wrist  
I stare at it and then I miss  
The moments when I loved you all along.**_

_**I fell for you the moment that you first spoke to me  
You held me in your heart for oh so long  
But now I'm in a battle  
To find you somewhere in Seattle  
I miss the moments when I loved you all along**_

_**So search your heart, my dear Izzy  
And I am sure that you will see  
That you were always meant to be  
That one and only girl for me**_

_**You gave my life adventurous cause  
Back when your only mission was  
The moments when you loved me all along.**_

**Disclaimer: And original song by my, entitled "When I Loved you All Along", same melody as "When We Didn't Get Along" from "It's About Time" and same singer, too. Tell me what you think of it.**

"Ferb, there's no way I'm going to just stand by and let Isabella get herself killed out there in New York."

"And what do you suppose you're going to do about it?"

"The only thing I _can_ do in this type of situation. I'm going to go to New York City and find her!" Phineas's mind was made up on this, as he stormed downstairs and started making his way to the front door. Linda, Lawrence, and Candace were all eating breakfast at the table.

"Phineas, where are you going?" Linda inquired.

"Isabella went to New York City to look for her dad."

"Wait. All by herself?"

"Yep. And I'm going to go there too and find her before she gets herself either hurt or killed."

"Wait, Phineas! You can't!" Candace shouted, getting up and running over to him.

"Candace, I appreciate your concern, but I have to. Isabella is my best friend in the whole world." He took out his cellphone and handed it to her. "And after a friend that you've liked for so many years finally gets the courage to leave you a message on your cellphone confessing her affections for you goes missing, what would _you_ do?"

Candace gasped, realizing Isabella finally told all. "She didn't!?"

"Oh she did. It's all on the phone. And now, it's going to be my job to bring her back to the Tri-State Area. And nothing is going to stop me!"

"But wait, Phineas!"

"Nothing you say is going to stop me, Candace."

"OK, but I was _going_ to say that you can't do this in your pajamas." Phineas looked down and realized that he had forgotten to get dressed. "At least get dressed first."

"Oh, right. That would probably help."

* * *

So after eating some breakfast & getting dressed, Phineas & Ferb packed up some stuff to take with them and headed out the door. Linda & Lawrence were still skeptical about the whole thing. They didn't want to see their children get hurt like this, just like Phineas didn't want to see Isabella get hurt.

"Phineas, are you sure you want to do this?" Linda asked them.

"Of course I'm sure, mom. I haven't been this sure of anything in years." Phineas replied. "Ferb and I are going to bring Isabella back home if it's the last thing I ever do."

"I don't know. New York City is a very dangerous city. What, with all the gang-related violence, the gunmen, the illegal gambling -- I really think Candace should at least go with you."

"No thanks, mom. She'll only be a distraction to my mission."

"When the boy sets his mind to something, he doesn't stop until he completes his mission." Ferb said.

"What!? You think _I_ would be a distraction!?" Candace shrieked.

"Yes. Yes I do. What, with your constant yelling and cursing and such, I wouldn't be able to concentrate. And concentration is one of the most essential tools to the completion of this mission. Now come on, Ferb. Our bus is about to leave. By the way, where's Perry? I wanted to say goodbye to him."

"I don't know. I haven't seen him since last night."

"Hmm, that's weird. Oh well, say goodbye to him for me."

* * *

Their pet, Perry the Platypus, was already on his way to receive his mission from Major Monogram. A couple of blocks down from the Flynn-Fletcher home, Perry, already in his secret agent fedora, was waiting patiently for a bus to come pick up him. When it did, he climbed onto it, showed the bus driver his ticket, and took his seat at the back of the bus.

There was a DVD Player waiting for him. He pressed play on it, and Major Monogram's face popped up on it. "Good morning, Agent. P Sorry about this. But we're having your lair cleaned up. Apparently, some of our new agents had accidents in there, and now there are pee stains everywhere! Anyway, onto your mission."

"As you know, Danville's annual Fireside Girls Father/Child picnic is tomorrow, and I'm sure every father/child pair in the Tri-State Area is looking forward to it. I'm also sure, however, that Dr. Doofenshmirtz has something planned to ruin the festivities. Our sources confirm that Doofenshmirtz is building a new contraption. I'm sending you a picture."

A picture came out through the side of the laptop, which Perry grabbed, showing Doofenshmirtz's new invention. It was a very devious-looking invention, and it was grayish, with many spikes on it, and an antenna at the top. "Whatever Doofenshmirtz is planning, it can't be good. And I can't afford for Father's Day to be ruined this year. Really, I can't. My daughter's taking me to this fancy restaurant -- Actually, I'm not even supposed to know about it. I just overheard them talking about it the other day, and... Anyway, stop Doofenshmirtz at all costs!"

The platypus saluted his boss, and got off the bus at the next stop. He then turned on his jetpack and flew off to his nemesis's evil lair.

* * *

And as Perry got off of his bus, Phineas & Ferb boarded theirs. They looked out their window and waved goodbye to their familiy one last time before the bus took off to the Big Apple.

"Well, this is it, Ferb." Phineas said to his brother as they headed off. "We're on our way. To the Big Apple or bust!" Phineas took out a picture from his backpack which had Isabella in it. He stared at it for a really long time. Now that he knew of Isabella's crush on him, he had a lot of thinking to do, and very little time to do it in. "I won't rest until Isabella's back where she belongs. You can bet on that!"

He didn't understand romance at all. But he did know something about love. And he loved Isabella. He truly did. Even though he would struggle with being that kind of romantic guy that most girls are after, he would do brilliantly in loving her and caring about her, and in the end, that's all Isabella wanted.

_Isabella, I know you're out there somewhere._ Phineas thought to himself. _But whatever happens to me, I just want you back in Danville. I want you back where you belong. If I ever were to lose you, I'd give up all of my summer projects forever, because they wouldn't be any fun without you in my life._

_(Cue Flashback)_

_It was Isabella's 3rd birthday, and everybody was gathered around in her living room, watching her open presents that were not only given to her by her friends & family, but also given to her by Santa Claus, since her birthday fell right on Christmas Day._

_She got up to Phineas's gift to her. "To Isabella. Love Phineas." She tried to read outloud. She was still learning how to read. She slowly opened up the box and took out what was inside. It was a small, pink bow. "Wow. It's a bow!"_

_"Do you like it?" A small Phineas asked her._

_"I love it. Pink is my favorite color!" She wrapped her arms around Phineas's little neck, and then put her bow on. "Thank you, Phineas!"_

_"Happy birthday, Isabella."_

_"Merry Christmas, Phineas!"_

_(End Flashback)_

Phineas wiped away a tear from his eye thinking about that day. "You know, Ferb, that was one of the best days of my life. You know why?" Ferb shook his head no. "Because Isabella was there. And she was happy. And I love making my friends happy. So if finding her real dad will make her happy, then so be it." He sighed in a depressing manner and slumped in his seat. "I sure hope she's OK."

* * *

Speaking of the little girl, she was just getting off of her bus, which was about 3 hours ahead of Phineas & Ferb's bus. She took her backpack with her, walked onto the sidewalk, and stared up at the many buildings in her sight.

"Oh my gosh! So this is New York City!" She said to herself, looking at the many skyscrapers she caught sight of. "It's even bigger than I imagined. But I can't let myself get distracted by all of these buildings. I have a mission. I have to find my dad."

"Now let's see...where should I start..."

Isabella had absolutely no idea what to do next. So she did the only thing she could do when she was confused: walk. She just walked down the sidewalk as if she didn't have a care in the world. But she did. She did have a care in the world. Her only care right now was to find her dad.

She walked down the sidewalk and stumbled upon a café, and decided to head inside to get something to eat. She looked up at the menu and walked over to the counter. "Mornin'." One worker said who was cleaning a cup. "What'll you have?"

"Just give me an English muffin." She said depressingly. THe man went into the back room, grabbed an English muffin, and gave to Isabella, who then paid the man.

"Something on your mind? You look a bit down in the dumps."

"No, I'm fine." She lied, looking up at the wall. She noticed that there was a plaque on the wall that read "Dedicated to Mr. Shapiro, the best damn manager this place has ever seen". "Hey, what's that plaque say? The one up there?"

"Oh. That's a dedication to our long-time manager, Mr. Adam Shapiro."

"What's that supposed to mean? Did something happen to him?"

"Well...it's kind of a long story, and I don't want to bore you with the details."

"Oh not at all. Actually, that's why I'm here in New York."

"To see our manager?"

"Actually, he's my dad."

After those four words were spoken, everybody stopped what they were doing and looked over at the worker and Isabella. "What?"

"Mr. Shapiro is your father?"

"Yes. But I haven't seen him in over 7 years so I wanted to come by and meet him in person. Why? What happened with him?"

"OH boy. Kid, I don't think what you're about to hear."

"What?"

The employee looked at Isabella with sympathetic eyes and put his glass down. "OK, here it is. About 7 years ago, Mr. Shapiro built this cafe in an attempt to give back to the people. This cafe was built for those who can't afford to buy food from grocery stores or for people who just need some place to get away from the scenery of city life. He built this from the ground up, and in no time at all this became one of the hottest spots in the city."

"And he has such a selfless attitude to go with it. Yes, he gave us all a raise and a week-long paid vacation. He even gave us free health insurance and shortened our work shifts. He was the best damn boss a worker could ever ask for."

"So...where is he?"

"Not here, if that's what you're asking. One day came a "Take your child to work" day where every employee had to bring their child to work with them. But Mr. Shapiro...well, at the time he claimed that he didn't have any children. So that's when he decided to quit his job and leave."

"He's gone!?"

"Well...gone from here at least. He doesn't work here anymore. And he hasn't made a public appearence since that day."

"Really?"

"Yep."

"Wow. He seems like a really nice guy."

"He was."

"Now I know I have to find him! I'll do whatever it takes!" She took a huge bite out of her muffin, left it there, stood up, and walked out of the cafe. "Thanks, mister."

"Wait a minute! Wait! Don't you at least want a beverage!?"

**End of Chapter 2!**

**Yes, I know it's short. But, please don't flame about it.**

**Next Time: Phineas begins his search to find Isabella. Plus, Doofenshmirtz attempts to ruin Father's Day for everyone else.**

**Expected Update: Like, maybe December 24th or something like that, if I'm lucky. I'll get to it when I get to it. Just be patient. I have a lot going on right now.**


	4. Let's Ruin Father's Day, You Jerk!

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Chapter 3: Let's Ruin Father's Day, You Jerk!**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't get your hopes up for any good original songs. I might give it a shot, but it might not be that good.**

* * *

**_Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated!_**

While Phineas, Ferb, & Isabella were busy with their business, Perry was busy with his mission to stop Dr. Doofenshmirtz from ruining Father's Day for everyone. The platypus flew off on his jetpack and traveled through the skies of the Tri-State Area, arriving at his nemesis's evil lair just moments later. He climbed up to one of the higher floors and looked inside the window. It was very dark inside, so he had somewhat of a hard time of getting a good idea of what Doofenshmirtz was up to.

But once the window shot out ropes and tied Perry up, and then rotated to bring him in, it became the least of his problems.

"Ahh, Perry the Platypus." The evil scientist said, stepping out of the safety of the shadows and letting himself be in full view. "As usual, your timing is uncanny. I see you got caught in the trap that I had set up on my window. I never actually thought I'd have to use that one, but, live and learn, I suppose."

"And now, Perry the Platypus, my latest and greatest creation!" Doofenshmirtz walked over to his new machine. "Do you--Do you remember last summer when I built that "Misbehavinator" that would make dogs misbehave? Remember? Well, I've upgraded my Misbehavinator, and make it even bigger and better than before! And with this device, I am going to ruin Father's Day for everyone in the entire Tri-State Area! A ha ha ha!"

"As you know, Pery the Platypus, my childhood has always been...somewhat atrocious. You know, with the whole "lawn gnome" thing, and my birthday, and all that junk. You see, my father was always a proud man, but at a very young age, he disowned me and sent me to live in the forest with the wolves! He did this every single year on Father's Day because he said he was "ashamed of the boy I was". Oh, but he would go and spend an entire day at the carnival with Roger! Ooh, how I hated that! Those were the worst years of my entire life!"

"And since my Father's Day was ruined back when I was a child, I will ruin Father's Day for everybody else in the entire Tri-State Area!" He pressed a button on his contraption and the whole thing started lighting up with power. "Now, I know what you're thinking. And yes, I know this would also ruin Father's Day for me and Vanessa...but, I've accounted for this. I've pre-programmed the device so anybody under the name Doofenshmirtz will not be affected. That means the only way that my Father's Day with Vanessa can be ruined is if the plans I made for us end in total disaster."

Perry raised an eyebrow at the evil scientist.

"What? Hey, just because I am an evil scientist doesn't mean _every _single thing I do has to be evil. I do have a family, you know. Now, as for today's plans, Vanessa and I are going to see "Shrek the Musical" on broadway. Then we're going to this fancy new restaurant. You know, in the past, my attempts to bond with Vanessa have never actually gone so well. So I'm hoping this one will. But if we don't hit it off, I'm definitely going to ruin it for everybody else. Don't worry about my device just yet, Perry the Platypus. It's just in standby mode."

The doctor took out a remote from his pocket and showed it to Perry. The remote had a green button on it. "See? This is the button that activates it if I decide to do it. Anyway, see you, Perry the Platypus! And Happy Father's Day to me! And Vanessa, too." And with that, he casually put the remote in his pocket, and walked out the front door.

After that, he got into his car, and drove off to his ex-wife's home to pick up his less-than-enthusiastic-about-this daughter Vanessa, who was sitting on the couch, listening to music and watching TV at the same time.

"_Crudely-Painted Not-So-Funny Plywood Cut Out Folk Art! Crudely-Painted Not-So-Funny Plywood Cut Out Folk Art! Crudely-Painted Not-So-Funny Plywood Cut Out Folk Art!"_

_"Hi, I'm Al Harrington from Al Harrington's 'Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm-Flailing Tube-Man' Emporium and Warehouse'! As an unwanted result from a recent lawsuit, I am now in posession of hundreds of palettes of Crudely-Painted No-So-Funny Plywood Cut Out Folk Art! and it's just  
waiting to transform your uncut, trash-strewn lawn into a living canvas that tells passers-by, "Hey, everyone, a real funny bugler lives here." Your neighbors will chuckle warmly, and motorists will slow down and applaud when they cast their eyes on such favorites as...Sort-of Ben and Jerry's-Looking Cow, Black Silhouetted Cowboy Leaning on Barn and everybody's favorite, Fat Woman Bending Over Tending to her Garden in Big, Polka-Dotted Bloomers. Most of this stuff is price to move and until it does, it's an enormous fire hazard, so please, come see me on Route 2 in Weekapaug!"_

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Vanessa was too distracted by her music and the TV to hear it, so (once again) Charlene, her mother, had to answer it. She opened it and was surprised to see Dr. Doofenshmirtz there.

"Heinz, what are you doing here?"

"I'm here to pick up Vanessa. It's Father's Day, you know, and I figured that I should spend it with my own daughter, right?" The doctor replied nervously to Charlene, the remote in his pocket.

"Oh, that's right. You said over the phone you had something special planned for today."

"Yes, that's right. You remembered."

"I told Vanessa about it, but she wasn't exactly thrilled over it."

"I know, but I'm sure that once we get going she's going to change her tune. Oh Vanessa!" He shouted to his daughter, who did not hear him at first over the music and the TV. "Vanessa!" He shouted again, this time, getting her attention.

Vanessa looked up at the door, and saw who it was that was calling her. Her somewhat relaxed face fell when she saw it was her dad. _Oh crap, not again._ She thought to herself as she stood up and walked over to the door. "Dad, what are you doing here?"

"What are you talking about? I'm here to pick you up for the day I planned for us!"

"Dad, not this again..."

"What!?"

"Every time you plan to do something with me on Father's Day, you end up either embarrassing me, or destroying everything."

"Oh come on! When has that ever happened!?"

"Remember last year when you tried to take me to that amusement park and you ended up breaking all the rides because you couldn't fit into any of them?"

"I could've sworn that I got that hunch in my back fixed!"

"And then there was 2 years ago when you threw me a little kid's party for us to celebrate the holiday together."

"Hey, that cost me a lot of money!"

"And then 3 years ago you tried to host some picnic with your old evil scientist buddies that ended Danville $30,000,000 in debt!"

"OK, OK, OK! So my past attempts at making Father's Day special haven't exactly turned out the way I hoped for...or your hoped for, for that matter. But this year...this year, I know that what I have in store for you is gonna blow your socks off!"

"You don't mean that literally, do you?"

"Oh will you just relax? I have everything under control." He took his daugher by the shoulder and walked her over to his scooter.

_This is going to be a long day. _Vanessa thought to herself. "Dad, you do know that Father's Day isn't until tomorrow, right?"

"I know, I know!"

"Then why are you taking me anywhere today?"

"Because, Ms. Nosey, I have a L.O.V.E.M.U.F.F.I.N. convention to go to tomorrow, and I won't be in town. So I made plans for us to spend the day together today. That way, I wouldn't miss anything."

"I don't have a good feeling about this, dad."

"Don't worry. I guarentee that you'll change your mind after today."

* * *

Meanwhile, back in New York City, Phineas & Ferb had just arrived on a bus, looking for their friend, Isabella, before she does harm to herself. 3 hours had passed since Isabella arrived in New York City, and it was now 8 o'clock in the morning.

"OK, Ferb, we're in New York City." Phineas said to his brother upon steppingoff the bus. "Wow, I never realized just how big it was. Isabella could be anywhere here. We have to check anywhere and everywhere a ten-year old girl could hide here. Let's start by putting these posters up and see if anybody's heard from her."

And so the two boys quickly got to work putting up hundreds of posters with Isabella's picture on them, information about her, and the reason she's in NYC in the first place. They passed out flyers to bypassers and bystanders they came across, and even taped some flyers to poles and lamp-posts.

They even went into a couple of buildings and passed out flyers to everybody there. Ironically, one of the buildings they went into was the very same cafe Isabella had gone into earlier that day. They passed out flyers to every single person in there, even the employees.

"Excuse me, sir, but maybe you can help us. We're looking for our friend, Isabella." Phineas told the guy at the counter, which was the exact same guy Isabella just had a conversation with. He took one of their flyers. "She's about 4'8-4'9, she wears a pink dress with a white shirt, pink shoes, and a pink bow."

"Isabella, huh? Hmm, that's funny."

"What?"

"The girl on this poster looks a lot like the girl that came in here a couple of hours ago."

"You mean you saw her? She was here?"

"Why yes. Yes she was. Why? Are you friends with her?"

"I'm her best friend! Or, at least I'm supposed to be..." Phineas looked down at the ground, he couldn't help but feel guilty about Isabella leaving. That, combined with the fact that he now knew that she had a major crush on him just made him feel miserable. "We're looking for her before she gets herself either hurt or in trouble."

"Yeah, I know. She told me. She's here looking for her father, Mr. Shapiro."

"That's right. Do you know where he is? Maybe we can find her there."

"Unfortunately, I don't. He used to be our manager here for less than a year. But once a "Take Your Child To Work Day" came around, he resigned and nobody has seen him in public since."

"Wow, that is just awful. We have to find her!" Phineas turned to his stepbrother. "She may be just setting her up for disappointment." He turned back to the worker. "Did you see which way she went?"

"Yeah. She left the cafe and made a right." He pointed them in the direction she went in.

"Thanks. Come on, Ferb!" The two brothers then ran out of the cafe and followed Isabella's steps. Phineas was very determined to find her no matter how long it would take or what happened to him.

* * *

Isabella, as it turns out, wasn't that far ahead of them. In fact, she was just a few streets down, still trying to find either her dad or clues that would lead her to her dad. With each step she took, she couldn't help but think about him. She wasn't sure what he was like, or whether or not he would be glad to see her.

After about another half hour of walking, she came across a building that said "Find a Friend". It was a building completely dedicated to finding either people who are lost, or people you lost contact with. She took an interest in this and decided to go inside and see if she could find her father. Isabella approached the front desk, where a stern, yet friendly 30-year old man was busy on his computer.

"Um, excuse me?" She rang the bell at the front desk. The guy there looked up from his computer and noticed Isabella there.

"Oh, sorry. DIdn't see you there." The man cleared his throat and stood up, walking over to her. "Welcome to "Find a Friend". Here, we help those who have lost contact with a loved one and are looking to rekindle or are just wanting to find out more information about somebody. So, what can we do to help you today?"

"Well, I've lost contact with a loved one, and I'm looking to rekindle."

"Excellent. Right this way." The man led Isabella down one of the halls in the building, showing her the many rooms in the place. Each room was filled with several people looking for the same thing Isabella was. "As you can see, we get thousands of people everyday that want to get reconnected with a loved one that they've lost contact with. We're like that show "The Locater", except we make a profit."

He led her into an empty room, where that was in there was a working computer and a printer. He walked over to the computer. "OK, so who are we looking for?"

"Mr. Shapiro." The guy started typing stuff on his computer. But for some reason, he wasn't able to get any information.

"Hmm, that's strange."

"What? What is it?"

"For some reason, I can't get anything on a Mr. Shapiro. The computer says I need more information about him. Can you give me any of his family information?"

"Um, sure. He had an ex-wife named Vivian, and a daughter named Isabella." Isabella felt really uncomfortable telling the man about her family. Of course, the man did not know that it was her family and she had no interest in telling him.

The man typed in the information Isabella gave him, and two search results came up. "Hmm, OK. We have two search results you can choose from. Here, I'll print them both out for you."

He printed out the search results for both "Mr. Shapiro"'s that it could find, which gave Isabella the address at which they were both located.

"But...how will I know which address to go to?"

"Yeah, I don't know what to tell you, kid? To be honest, this is the first time something like this has happened. My suggestion would be to try both."

"I don't have that kind of time!"

"Well...what's your father like? Maybe I can help you out a little bit."

"I don't know! He left when I was really young so I don't know what he's like! I barely even know what he looks like! All I know is that he's living somewhere out here, and I'm desperate to find him so I can spend Father's Day with him!"

The man just looked at the poor stressed out girl and took a shoulder. "Kid, I don't think I'll ever know the pain that you're going through right now. But if I could offer you any words of advice, it would be these: no matter how awful you're feeling right now, I can almost guarentee that you'll feel a whole lot worse about it tomorrow."

Isabella calmed down long enough to look at the man straight in the eyes. "That doesn't make me feel any better."

"I know. What part of "feel worse" did you not understand?"

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Danville, Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Vanessa were out enjoying all the plans the scientist had for his daughter. Well...at least he wanted them to enjoy them, but he wasn't so sure.

His first item on the agenda was to go see a broadway performance of "Shrek! The Musical!", which he went to see every year it came around. He and Vanessa used to watch broadway musicals all the time together when she was really young. She used to love them, but as he kept doing it more and more often, she grew to despise them. But he was determined to change that no matter what it took.

So he took her to the Danville Broadway theater where they had tickets for its 11:00 performance of Shrek! The Musical.

"Dad, do we really have to do this?" Vanessa asked her father as they entered the theater.

"Look, Vanessa, I know you don't like Broadway Musicals -- heaven knows why -- but I promise you you're gonna love this one. I mean, it's Shrek! You used to love Shrek!"

"Yeah, when I was like, 7!"

They took their seats inside and waited for the play to start five minutes later. Immediately, things started moving and nearly everybody was enjoying the play. Everybody, of course, except for Vanessa, who wanted nothing more than to leave and call her friend, Lacey. Well, actually, it was Vanessa, and another random guy in the back of the theater who hated it.

"Hey! You people suck!!" He yelled to the stage. "You call yourselves broadway actors!? I call you a--"

"Hey, buddy! Do you mind!? Some of us are trying to enjoy the show, here!" Doofenshmirtz decided that, for his little girl, he would step in and shut the guy up.

"Dad, don't. You're just going to get us kicked out."

"Don't you worry, Vanessa. I'll handle this. Excuse me, sir! But if you have a problem with broadway musicals, then why are you here!?"

"I have my reasons!"

"Oh really? Well, do your reasons include "Being a total jerk" and ruining the chance for everyone else to see this wonderful performance!? 'Cause if they do, then I have a suggestion! It's called the 'Exit'! Why don't you use it!?"

"Why don't you come over here and make me use it!?"

ANd that, my friends, was the beginning of what Danville likes to call "The Evil Scientist/Fat Unemployeed Loser Revolution", which resulted in hundreds of disappointment, several casualties (And by that I mean everyone part of the Broadway Musical losing their jobs), and Dr. Doofenshmirtz, Vanessa, & the other guy getting kicked out.

**End of Chapter 3!**

**Next Time: Isabella gets closer to finding her real dad, while Phineas gets closer to understanding her feelings for him.**

**Expected Update: I don't know. Maybe January 8th or 9th or something like that.**

**Happy 2010!!**


	5. Thy Name is Shapiro

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Chapter 4: Thy Name is Shapiro**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't get your hopes up for any good original songs. I might give it a shot, but it might not be that good.**

* * *

Phineas and Ferb were still walking around town, looking for Isabella. They had no idea where she had gone looking for her dad. "Come on, Ferb! We have to keep looking!" Phineas said anxiously to his brother. "Isabella could be anywhere in this big city, and the last thing I'd want is for her to get hurt." THe boy kept trudging on through open traffic, hoping his best friend, other than Ferb, was unharmed. Ferb was concerned for him and wanted to know why he was all of a sudden in a rush to find her.

He grabbed his shoulder to get him to stop in his tracks. "What's up, Ferb?"

"I'm just curious. Why are you in such a rush to find her all of a sudden?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when she got a bad case of the hiccups, you built a giant haunted house for her. But you didn't show any signs that you had feelings for her then. And then comes today where she runs away to find her father, and all of a sudden you're head over heels for her?"

"It's not like that, Ferb!" Phineas retaliated, though he wasn't sure if he should have. "I mean, I did lots of wild projects for her because she's my friend, and I care about her. But...you heard what she said. She said that she was in love with me, and she has been since we were 3. She called me selfless, loving, smart, and generous. The only people who have ever called me that are mom and dad. Is-Is that normal?"

Ferb didn't want to answer, fearing that if he said the wrong thing, he would regret it for the rest of his life.

"I mean, I really do like Isabella. But I never thought about it as having a crush on her. I just thought that was always how it was supposed to be when it came to girls." He sighed, confused out of his mind. "Look, all I know is, when I find Isabella, I'm gonna have a lot of things to talk to her about. I just hope we're not too late."

So they continued walking along the sidewalk, looking for Isabella. The entire time, Phineas's thoughts were clouded. He kept thinking about what Isabella had said on his cellphone, spilling her affections for him. He had no idea how to feel about it. Truthfully, he had no idea how he should feel about her. He always thought of Isabella as a friend and always thought that was the way it was supposed to be. Secretly, though, he always did have feelings for her, but he figured he would show his feelings through his crazy inventions. Fortunately, it worked.

_(Cue Flashback)_

_THe haunted house suddeny lifted off the ground into the air. Unbenounced to the kids, it was being carried by Perry's battle with Doofenshmirtz. Unfortunately for them, Phineas was still trapped inside._

_"Uh guys...help!" Phineas called out still in the house. "Help!"_

_Isabella looked on as her best friend was being carried away from her. "Phineas!"_

_A board that he was holding onto broke off and he bega plunging to his death, screaming at the top of his lungs. Knowing she had to act fast, well...she acted fast. "Quick everyone! Sashes!" She shouted to her fellow scouts. They all grabbed their sashes, and, in quick work, made a mini tramploine, which Phineas bounced off of, saving him from his doom. Isabella then caught him in her arms before he hit the ground. "Now **that** was scary. Hey, my hiccups are gone!"_

_The two kids smiled at each other as Isabella continued to hold him in her arms. She didn't know it then, but Phineas actually enjoyed being held like that._

_(End Flashback)_

That was one of his favorite memories of the previous summer. Another memory he had was when Isabella asked him to the Night of the Falling Stars Girls Choice Dance. He had assumed that Isabella wanted him and Ferb to go with her, as friends, rather than an actual date.

_(Cue Flashback)_

_The rocket ship landed safely back on the ground, and as everybody gathered around it, Phineas & Ferb exited the sip as if it was no big deal._

_"Hey Phineas! You guys were great!" Isabella said as they exited._

_"Thanks. You weren't so bad yourself." Phineas replied, stepping foot onto the ground._

_"Oh. Thanks." She giggled. "So, would you like to go to the Night of the Falling Stars Girls Choice Dance with me?"_

_"Sounds like fun."_

_"Really?"_

_"Ferb, what's our schedule like?" His stepbrother took out a book, flipped through some pages, and gave him a thumbs up. "OK. We'll be there."_

_Her face suddenly fell slightly. "Both of you?"_

_"Sure. Why don't you come by and we'll walk over together?"_

_"Sure. No prob." She smiled a little, though it looked a little distorted with disappointment._

_(End Flashback)_

Phineas had no idea what Isabella had in mind when she asked him to that dance last summer. Now, he was feeling guilty about it. "Hey Ferb?" Phineas turned to his stepbrother. "What do you think Isabella meant when she asked me to the Night of the Falling Stars Girl Choice Dance last summer?"

"Well, based on my observations from past summers, I assume that she wanted to get some time alone with you. You know, just you and her." Ferb replied, not showing any emotion at all.

"Alone time? Oh man, do you think she was waiting to confess her feelings for me?"

"Probably. She's wanted to do it for s olong. But she feared that you would become so scared from it that you would stop being her friend."

"Stop being her friend? No, that's ridiculous! Isabella is my best friend in the whole world! Nothing could make me want to stop being her friend. I just want to make sure she's safe...except now, I guess I feel a little guilty that I didn't see the signs beofre. I didn't notice her feelings for me and I fear that it's too late and that I'm going to lose her forever. If that were to happen...I don't think I'd ever forgive myself. Come on, we have to find her."

And so they continued on the sidewalk, desperately searching for the girl, who was now on her way to see her dad.

* * *

Isabella was so close to him now she couldn't believe it. She was walking along the sidewalk, once again, just several blocks ahead of Phineas and Ferb, and thinking about what her dad would be like.

"I can't believe this!" Isabella said happily to herself, continuing on the path. "I'm about to meet my dad for the first time in almost 8 years!" She was truly excited that she was this close to meeting him. But at the same time, she was also a bit nervous. She had no idea what he was like, so it was a bit scary for her as well. He could've been one of those mean, abusive men who hated children and wanted them all dead. Isabella hated those kind of people.

On the other hand, he also could've been one of those rich people who lived in a big mansion and was loving, kind, and would keep Isabella there where she would be raised among the wealthy and giving forever and ever. Both options seemed terrible to her because she didn't want to leave all of her friends behind.

But above all of it, she had to keep going, because she was still on a mission. All she wanted was some answers from him. That's all she wanted. Answers. She had so many questions and so little time. Her mind was racing

She kept trudging on and eventually, she came up to the place she was looking for. The directions she had gotten had led her to two homes, not too far apart from each other. One was a broken up old shack with falling pieces of wood coming from the wall, and another was a big, golden mansion on top of a big hill. Both addresses were what she had gotten, but she wasn't sure which one to try first. So, she decided to go for broke: prepare for the worst, but hope for the best.

She walked up to the shack and knocked on what was left of its door. She waited a few moments before somebody came up to the door and opened it. It was a man, a poor, and somewhat bitter old man, though he tried to be nice to visitors who came by.

"Yes, can I help you?" He asked. His clothes were ripped, his skin was blochy everywhere, and his hair was growing everywhere. Clearly, this was not her father.

"Um, yes, I'm looking for a 'Mr. Shapiro'."

"Mr. Shapiro?"

"Yes. I-I'm his daughter, and I haven't seen him in 8 years."

"Mr. Shapiro..." He pondered on that name for a moment. "Wow, it's been a long time since someone has uttered that name around here."

"So...I'm guessing you're not Mr. Shapiro."

"Well, actually, it's spelled, 'Mr. Shapi_ra_. As in, with an 'A' at the end instead of an 'O'."

"Shapira?"

"Yeah. Sometimes, computers make typos like that when they look me up."

"Oh. OK then. Sorry to bother you." She turned around, feeling a bit defeated, and headed for the next house.

"Wait, wait a minute." He said stopping her in her tracks. She turned her head towards him. "So you're his _daughter_?"

"Yes. Yes I am. Why? Did you know him?"

"I did. Once."

"What was he like?"

"Oh boy. Where do I start? Where do I start--oh yeah." He gathered his thoughts together and waited until Isabella gave her undivided attention to him. She was unsure in doing this because she was still scared of how her dad was. "OK, here it is. It was about over 6 years ago. A man came by this part of the city. He apparently had just moved into that house across the street." He pointed to an abandoned house across the street from them. "I went up to him one day, and after he introduced himself to me, he told me that he had just come by looking for a new job after he had quit being a manager at some prestigious cafe in the city."

"Wow. So what happened?"

"Well there used to be an elementary school around the corner that was running for over 20 years. But a freak accident left it high on fire, and the entire building burned down!"

"Oh my gosh!"

"Luckily, none of the kids or the teachers were hurt. But, the city didn't have the budget to fix it so all of the teachers lost their jobs."

"That's horrible!"

"Indeed, child. But, Mr. Shapiro stepped in and said that he was great with children. So he offered to take a few in everyday and home school them himself. You know, like a real school, but he was the only teacher there. It started out as a couple of kids, but then, nearly everyone in the school wanted to be taught by him. Now, he teaches all of the kids year-round so they can get the education they need?"

"Year-round? So he doesn't give them a summer vacation?"

"Well it's not like a regular school day. You see, there were about 70 kids in the whole school. So he divided up his day so that he'd take 35 kids for a morning session, from 8 to 11, and then an afternoon session, from 12 to 3. This way, everyone has some time to relax either before or after their session."

"That's cool. And he teaches them all throughout high school?"

"No, actually. Once they reach 3rd grade level, they move onto another elementary school to continue their education, and then another batch of younger kids come to be taught by him."

"Oh."

"Yeah, but the kids don't mind doing it. Every kid that's taught by him loves him. They think he's the best teacher ever. And the city was so grateful that they decided to give him a salary and before anybody knew it, he was one of the richest men in the city. And yet he's still a teacher. He's living in that big, golden mansion up there." He pointed towards the mansion, which, indeed, was big.

"Whoa, that _is_ big!"

"Yes it is. You know, his afternoon class is about to end. Now would be a good time to see him."

"Yeah, you're right. Wow. All this time I was bracing for the worst about him, when all along he was probably one of the best at what he does. Well, thanks for all of your help." She said gracefully to the man.

"You're welcome. Good luck with him. He really is a good guy." The man said once more before he shut the door. With that, Isabella now knew what she was doing. For some reason, just that talk with that stranger renewed her confidence. She was ready to face her dad. So she now made her way towards the giant golden mansion, eager to meet him for the first time in over 8 years.

Meanwhile, over by the mansion, school had just ended, and the children were all being let out for the day. They all ran out the front door down the hill, back to their homes to enjoy the rest of the day. Isabella noticed this and simply laughed it off. She approached the front door. _Well, this is it._ She thought to herself. _This is the moment I've been waiting for_. She went to knock on the door, when she was interrupted by some yelling behind her.

"Isabella!" She turned around to see who was calling her name. It turned out to be Phineas, as he and Ferb came running up the street towards her. By the time they reached her they were both out of breath.

"Phineas!" She gasped. She was so surprised to see him there. She didn't expect anybody to follow her all the way here. And she didn't expect Phineas to run all the way up the hill and give her a hug. "What are you doing here?"

"When we found out you came here to find your dad, we decided to follow you." He explained. "I wanted to make sure you weren't hurt. I-I mean, _we_ wanted to make sure you weren't hurt."

As soon as Isabella saw Phineas slip up, she knew the real reason he was here. "Uh, t-thanks. But let me guess, Phineas. You got my message that I left for you on your cellphone."

Phineas suddenly remembered that message, and was a bit nervous to answer her. "Yes."

"Oh." The girl suddenly tried to think of a reason why she left it while not revealing her true feelings. "Well, you see--"

"Isabella, it's OK." Phineas placed a hand on her shoulder to reassure her. "I'm not mad. I was just worried that I'd never see you again. That's why Ferb and I risked our lives to come here, so we'd be able to find you." Isabella was afraid to smile at him in fear that he would still reject her. "You're my best friend, Isabella, and if anything happened to you, and I wasn't able to protect you, I'd never forgive myself." The girl started letting out a light smile. "Look, when all of this is over, I think I have some things that I need to talk to you about."

"And I think I'd be willing to listen." The two hugged warmly, knowing that they were going to be OK. Isabella's smile grew wider now, because she knew that whether or not she returned her romantic feelings for him, he would always be there for her. After they let go, Isabella turned to the door, took in a deep breath, and knocked on it three times, waiting anxiously for a response. "Well, Phineas, this is it. I'm about to meet my dad for the first time in 8 years. I have to admit, I'm a little nervous."

"I'm here for you, Isabella." Phineas assured her. "And Ferb's here for you too." The girl smiled again as Phineas slowly, and nervously reached out and grabbed Isabella's hand, which made them both smile. The doorknob started turning slowly, and the door started opening slowly. All three friends looked on eagerly as it opened all the way.

**End of Chapter 4!**

**Wow! Another chapter so quickly! Sorry, I didn't expect to get it done so fast!**

**Next Time: The mystery is finally solved! "Who is Isabella's father?"**

**Expected Update: ??? Look for it anywhere after January 8th.**


	6. Cruel Fate

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Chapter 5: Cruel Fate**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't get your hopes up for any good original songs. I might give it a shot, but it might not be that good.**

* * *

Back in Danville, Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Vanessa had just gotten kicked out of an exclusive restaurant, one that Doofenshmirtz spent months trying to get a reservation for. And they got kicked out when Doofenshmirtz complained about the food taking so long to cook.

_(Cue Flashback)_

_Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Vanessa walked into the restaurant, Heinz casually, and Vanessa trudging her feet. "Dad, do we really have to do this? I mean we already got kicked out of Shrek! What makes you think we won't get kicked out of here?"_

_"Because I've been trying to get these reservations for, like, 6 months! And now that I have them, I am not going to give them the chance to kick us out! These reservations cost me nearly a thousand bucks!"_

_They waited patientlly for their table. And after about 2 minutes, their patience paid off, as a waiter came over. "Hello, can I help you?"_

_"Yes. I have a reservation under the name 'Doofenshmirtz'. Table for two." The doctor calmly and triumphately told the waiter, who looked in his book._

_"Ah, yes, the Doofenshmirtz party. Right this way." The waiter graciously led them to their table, and as they sat down, the waiter set up their eating utensils & napkins. "Can I get you anything to drink?"_

_"I'll just have tap water." Vanessa said coldly. _

_"OK..." The man was a bit confused, as he had never come across someone so cold (and in his eyes, obnoxious) as Vanessa. The waiter turned to Dr. Doofenshmirtz. "And what will you have, sir?"_

_"Do you have any Gingerale? M-My stomach's really been bothering me lately." Doofenshmirtz asked, to which the young waiter nodded and politely left. Vanessa and Doofenshmirtz were left to wait for a waiter to come take their order. At first, they were able to wait patiently. Well, actually, Vanessa was patient the entire time on account of she was listening to her MP3 player. But Dr. Doofenshmirtz, however, was a different story. He has always had problems with his patience, but today was a new low._

_"Oh for crying out loud! This is ridiculous!" He shouted so loudly it actually got Vanessa's attention. She took her ear pieces out of her ears and looked at her father. "We haven't seen another waiter since we got here!"_

_"Dad, it's only been, like, 5 minutes." Vanessa said calmly._

_"Oh come on! This is the fanciest restaurant in the Tri-State Area! Shouldn't they have better service than this!?"_

_At that moment, another waiter did come over to see what the fuss was. "Sir, is there a problem?"_

_Doofenshmirtz glared at the waiter, who took a step back. "Listen, bucko! I don't know what kind of game you are trying to play with me, but I won't put up with it! I am trying to celebrate Father's Day with my daughter, and this restaurant's crappy service is ruining that!"_

_"I have no idea what you are talking about."_

_"Well, then, maybe this will help jog your memory." He pulled out a ray gun and zapped him, and in seconds, the waiter was zapped to another dimmension, one where he was instantly eaten by a baby monster with one eye. "You know, ever since I turned the Awayinator into a portable ray gun, going out is fun again!"_

_Doofenshmirtz, however, was the only one thinking this. Everybody else, even Vanessa, and stared at him angrily. (Vanessa, though, was staring at him shocked) "What? What'd I do?"_

_(End Flashback)_

Dr. D looked at his daughter as they walked to their scooter. He could tell that she was very upset with him. "OK, OK, I know that you're upset. But it's not like I didn't have good reason. The food was taking forever!"

"Dad, we were waiting 5 minutes." She pointed out.

"Oh. Really? Really, was that...was that all it was?"

"Yes, dad! That's what I tried to tell you. But no, you had to go and yell at that poor, innocent waiter and send him to another dimmension!"

"What? He was a background character? Nobody would have missed him."

"You're missing the point, dad! You got us kicked out because you couldn't keep your mouth shut!"

"Oh you're one to talk, Vanessa! At least my mouth was running so I could make this Father's Day the best we've ever had. Even though, technically, Father's Day isn't until tomorrow. Look, Vanessa, why do you hate me so much?"

"Hate you?"

"Yeah. You always ignore me when you're over for a visit, you hate all of my attempts to make a birthday party for you, and no matter what, it seems like you've just disowned me as a father."

"How could you possibly think that I hate you?"

"You mean you don't?"

"Well, I'm not crazy about you, but I'd never say that I hate you. As much as I hate to admit it, you're the only dad I got, and even though some of the things you do annoy me, you've done plenty of things for me that I've appreciated. Remember the time you managed to get that Mary McGuffin doll for me?"

"Yeah. I searched almost 10 years for it."

"And then there was that awesome party you threw for me for my 16th birthday."

"I was glad to hear that you liked it...even though it was completely the opposite of what I was hoping for. "

"Plus, you trusted me to get that Pizzazium Infinionite for you so I could show you I was responsible enough to own a car."

"I got arrested that day and sentenced to 200 hours of community service."

"Look, dad, you may not know this, but there are plenty of dads that are better at that job than you are." His face fell as they arrived at Charlene's house on the hill somewhere. "But, there are also plenty of dads who are worse than you." His face lit up a little bit. Vanessa stepped off the scooter. "Like I said before, you're not really that bad of a dad. I guess Father's Day just isn't a holiday we're meant to celebrate together. Anyway," He turned around towards the home. "I'll see ya later." ANd headed inside. Dr. D, feeling horrible, believe he had lost all hope of having a relationship with his daughter, hung his head in shame and drove back to his lair on his scooter.

When he arrived back at his building, he entered his lair to discover that Perry had escaped from his trap and had completely dismantled his new machine. Of course, by this point, the doctor didn't even care. "Oh, Perry the Platypus, I see you've escaped and have completely dismantled my Misbehavinator...oh wow, you really destroyed it. I-It's everywhere." He walked over and took the wrench Perry used, and threw it away, as he saw down next to his nemesis.

"Perry the Platypus, tell me. Do you think I am a bad person?" Perry turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "And I don't mean, like, evil as in trying to take over the Tri-State Area. Bad, as in I can't seem to do anything right -- and...and that doesn't include my numerous plans to take over the Tri-State Area."

Perry thought about that throughly for a moment before turning back to the doctor. He truly didn't have an answer for him. Doofenshmirtz sighe, feeling even worse about his situation than ever. "You see, Vanessa and I got into a disagreement, and...well, she was right when she said my many attempts to bond with her haven't exactly gone the way I had planned. Just once, I would like something I do to bond with her to go the way I want. I want to have a relationship with her, and I feel like I'm losing time to do that. I just wish I had another idea..."

The platypus reached into his back pocket and pulled out a flyer, a flyer advertising the Fireside Girls' Father/Child Picnic for tomorrow. He handed it to the doctor, who started reading it to himself. "Perry the Platypus, this is a wonderful idea! But...I have no idea how I am going to commit Vanessa to this. She's so hot-headed sometimes. Y-You're going to have to convince her somehow, because for some reason, I just can't."

Perry sighed, but knew that Doofenshmirtz was right. Vanessa was too stubborn to listen to her dad. So the platypus did the only thing left he could think of. He ran out the window, turned on his jetpack, and flew off towards Vanessa's house, knowing this was their last chance for Doofenshmirtz to do any bonding with her.

* * *

Isabella knocked on the giant door three times, and anxiously waited for a response. "Well, Phineas, this is it. I'm about to meet my dad for the first time in 8 years. I have to admit, I'm a little nervous." She said to her friend.

"I'm here for you, Isabella." Phineas assured her. "And Ferb's here for you too." The girl smiled again as Phineas slowly, and nervously reached out and grabbed Isabella's hand, which made them both smile. The doorknob started turning slowly, and the door started opening slowly. All three friends looked on eagerly as it opened all the way.

Out popped a short and scrawny man. But this wasn't just any man. No, this man has arms and legs made out of wood. Literally, his arms, his legs, hell even his torso, were made out of legs. "Good afternoon. May I help you, children?"

"Hi, is there a..." Isabella struggled, seeing the wooden man in front of him, hoping, praying that it wasn't her dad. "Mr. Shapiro here? A-Are _you_ Mr. Shapiro?"

"No. I get asked that alot, but I am not. I am Seamus, his butler."

"So is he here? I'd like to speak to him."

"Oh he's here, alright. But he has just finished his afternoon teachings. I'm not sure if he's in the mood for any visitors. But I'll check for you." He closed the door slowly on them and walked back into the home, where his actions were unknown for a brief amount of time. But, finally, after some time passed, he came back to them. "You may enter. But be gentle, and don't touch anything he doesn't give you permission to touch. Take the elevator to the 2nd floor and then it's the 3rd door on your right."

The three friends looked at each other, and without saying a word, decided that Phineas and Isabella would go in first, and Ferb would follow soon after. But first, he had a question he had to ask Seamus. "So what happened with you? Were you in some sort of accident?"

"No, me father was a tree."

Phineas and Isabella slowly crept into the giant mansion. It was literally 4 stories tall. There was a fireplace, a coffee table, anything any other mansion came equipped with. They walked over to the elevator, and rode it all the way up to the second floor.

While waiting on the elevator, Isabella kept twiddling her thumbs around, trying to calm her nerves down. "Isabella, it's OK. I'm here for you." Phineas said, taking her hand. "If he tries anything nasty, I'll protect you."

"I'm just nervous, Phineas. What if he isn't the man that other guy described him to be? What if he's a mean, old jerkface and he hates me?"

"How could anybody hate you!? You're sweet, you're kind, you're caring, and you're..." He stopped in his tracks for a moment, knowing he was about to say something that would either get Isabella really excited, or jeopardize their friendship forever. "...really cute." The both of them blushed for a moment before Phineas started speaking again. "There's no way he could ever hate you. There's no way anybody could ever hate you."

"Aww, thanks Phineas." She smiled at him warmly as the elevator doors opened up. They walked out slowly to the third door on their right. After they stood in front of it for a moment, Isabella knocked on it and waited for an answer. After a moment, someone inside finally answered. "Come in." So she opened the door and the two of them walked in.

The room had a fireplace in it, a large bookshelf, chairs, tables, even doors that led to several bedrooms and a restroom. There was a man sitting in one of the chairs by the fireplace. The two children slowly crept over to the fireplace, hoping he wasn't some sort of mass murderer or something. "Um...excuse me?" Isabella said quietly, approaching the chair the man was sitting in.

The chair slowly started turning in their direction, revealing that he was reading a book entitled "A Series of Unfortunate Events". He had gray hair, which stuck out on all ends, a gray mustache, glasses, and a baige suit on, complete with baige shirt & baige pants, along with black shoes.

"Ar-Are you...Are you Mr. Shapiro?" By this time, Isabella had anxiety written all over her body. Deep down, she was truly nervous. She prepared for the worst, but was hoping for the best.

"Why yes. Yes I am." He said in a low voice, a voice that sounded eerily similar to that of Adam West. "And who might you be?"

"Um, my name is Isabella, and this is my friend, Phineas." Isabella said nervously as Phineas waved nervously. She chuckled weakly. "Anyway, I'm new in town, and I've heard such great stories about you and your wonderful teaching job, and..." She was trying to come up with a lie so he wouldn't freak out. As afraid and nervous as she was, he was even more upset and tense about it. Nobody has ever bombarded him like this before. "I've never been to school before since my parents are poor. And I was wondering if...I don't know, I could have, maybe, one private lesson with you?"

He thought about it for a moment, and looked into her cute, and begging eyes, while Phineas stood there, scratching the back of his head in confusion. "Aww, what the heck? Of course, little girl. Just excuse me a moment so I can prepare myself." He turned around and gracefully walked over to one of his bookshelves, and started going through his vass inventory of books.

Phineas leaned in close to Isabella. "Isabella, what are you doing?" He whispered. "We didn't plan on this."

"I know, but what was I supposed to do?" She whispered back, enough so he wouldn't hear them. "I didn't want to just openly say that I was his daughter. He might not have believed me, or worse, he might have called the cops on us. I want him to get the picture first before I make my move. I don't want to scare him."

Adam Shapiro soon returned with a big book on History and some registration papers. "OK, normally I don't enroll students this late in the curriculum. But in your case, I'm willing to make an exception. I'll just need you to fill out these papers."

"OK. Thanks." Isabella took the papers out of his hands, and took out a pencil. While she began filling out the papers, Adam noticed her clothes, and they strongly resembled clothes he's seen before. "Well, little girl, I must say, I admire your wardrobe."

"Why thank you." She blushed a bit.

"Why, I haven't seen a beautiful bow like that since my daughter. You know, her name's Isabella as well. Have you ever met her? I have a picture of her." He put the book down and took out a recent picture of Isabella, from the previous summer. He took a quick look at it, and then his eyes went wide. He stared in shock, disbelief, his jaw dropping. He was starting to notice the resemblence. "Honey, what did you say your name was again?"

"Isabella." There was hint of nervousness in her voice. She knew he was starting to make the connection.

"And...what is your mother's name?" He had a feeling, but he had to be absolutely sure.

"Vivian."

Adam stared at her for a brief moment. Mixed emotions he felt; shock, joy, fear, and anxiety. He kneeled down and looked more closely at Isabella. "Oh my god. I-Isabella? I-Is that you?"

She winced for a moment before responding. This was either going to be one of the best days of her life, or the worst day of his. "Hi dad." She finally responded. (In a reference to **Charlie and the Chocolate Factory**)

"W-Well, come on. Let's get you situated. Here, why don't you go sit in one of those chairs, and I'll bring you and your friend something to drink."

"Okay." Adam stood up and graciously left the room for the kitchen, while Phineas and Isabella took a seat in one of the big chairsnear the fireplace. It was roomy enough for the both of them to fit it, but Phineas started feeling queasy sitting next to Isabella. He wasn't sure why, but he felt it had something to do with her crush on him. "Phineas, is everything OK?"

"Uh, yeah. I think I'm just not feeling like myself. That's all."

She had a feeling that she knew why he wasn't feeling well. "Well...is there anything you want to talk about while we're sitting here? Anything on your mind?" She hoped that she would be able to get Phineas talking first, so she wouldn't feel as uncomfortable about it.

"No. Not really." But the truth was he wasn't ready to talk about it yet, at least not in New York City. Thankfully, he would be able to wait because Adam Shapiro had returned, with three glasses of Orange Soda; one for Phineas, Isabella, and himself. The two kids thanks him for it and took a sip out of their cups.

"So...Isabella, darling. What brings you to this part of New York? I thought you and your mother were living peacefully in Danville." Adam said to his daughter, looking at her with concerned eyes.

"We are. But...it's a long story. The point is, I found out you were living here and I decided to scope you out." She tried to explain to him. "And Phineas and his stepbrother found out where I was going and followed me."

"Ahh, yes. Phineas and Ferb, your two closes friends. Where _is_ Ferb, anyway?"

"Out having a talk with your butler." Phineas said about his stepbrother before he noticed Ferb walking in. "Oh, there you are, Ferb."

"Ahh, Ferb, it's so good to see you again. Still the quiet type, I see. So, how have you been?"

Ferb didn't answer. But that didn't bother Adam the least bit.

"Ha ha! You still got it, Ferb." He turned back to Phineas and Isabella as Ferb joined them in the chair. Yeah, it was big enough to fit all three of them. "So, how have things been for you?"

"Um, great. Great." She said nervously, sipping her Orange Soda again. "Listen, dad, I don't want to sound rude, but...uh, the reason I came all this way to find you was because...I wanted some answers."

"Answers? Oh dear."

"Yeah. I really want to know...w-why you left in the first place. I mean, I know everything happens for a reason, but, I just don't want that reason to be that...that yoou were ashamed of me."

"Ashamed of _you_!? Isabella, how could you think such a horrible thought like that?"

"I don't know! But I was so hurt that fateful night when you walked out the door! I didn't know what to think back then, but..lately, I've slowly started to believe that it was all my fault that you left us."

"That's not true, Isabella! Why would he want to do that?" Phineas asked his friend.

"I don't know! But you try and come up with a reason why he left!"

"Isabella, just let me explain!" Isabella was becoming hysterical and Adam could see that.

"We were two months away from losing our home! My mom had to get another full-time job just to keep us from going on the streets, and you had the _nerve_ to get up and just walk out like you did! And you didn't even say goodbye to my mom! My mom! The woman who married you and raised _me_! All by herself after that! For 7 years we struggled to make ends meet, and only recently have things been getting better!"

"Isabella--"

"You know, there's a picnic in Danville that I could've been able to go to with you so I could finally earn my "Father/Daughter Picnic Patch", but no! No! Every single year, I'm forced to sit on the sidelines while my friends go out and play with their dad's! I wish that could've been you and me! But you left! You left me! Why did you leave, dad!?" She was starting to cry. "Why did you leave!? Why did you leave!?" She threw her cup at the wall, breaking it on impact. Then she ran up to him and started slapping him all over in anger. "Why did you leave, daddy!?"

She cried so hard that Phineas and Fer were forced to go up to them and pull her away from him, restraining her. She jumped into Phineas's arms and hugged him tightly, as Phineas did the same. This was her worst breakdown yet. It was even worse than the breakdown she had yesterday, and it took a lot longer for her to calm down, even while being held by the love of her life.

**End of Chapter 5!**

**Next Time: At last, the truth is revealed!**

**Expected Update: Check after January 24th.**


	7. The Truth Finally Comes Out

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Chapter 6: The Truth Finally Comes Out**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't get your hopes up for any good original songs. I might give it a shot, but it might not be that good.**

* * *

Isabella was going crazy with mixed emotions, and even though Phineas was holding her tightly, it took a little while for her to calm down. "Shh, it's OK, Isabella. It's OK." Phineas tried desperately to calm her down. It was horrifying for him to see his best friend crying like she was. "Just relax. Just relax..."

Isabella sniffled and looked up at him. Tears were still in her eyes, and yet Phineas couldn't help but smile. "I-I'm so sorry, Phineas. I-I really am. I'm just so stressed and confused..."

"Isabella, it's OK. Really. Just please, calm down. I hate seeing you like this." Phineas held her tightly, waiting for signs that she was calming down. She continued to cry into his shirt, mixed emotions wearing her down. He kissed her forhead gently as she turned back to her dad, who was now frowning in shame. "There, there, Isabella. Everything's gonna be alright."

After a few minutes, she was able to calm back down. She looked back up at Phineas, who was smiling, and managed to smile back at him. She wiped some tears away and looked back at her dad. "I'm sorry. I-I just wish I knew the truth about why you left. It feels like such a burden on my shoulders not knowing."

"I understand, dear. I wish I could've told you all those years ago, but I didn't think you were old enough to understand." Adam said gravely. Isabella held back even more tears, as Adam took in a deep breath. "But I think you are now. OK, here goes. Back when you were just an infant, I was...the mayor of Danville."

"You were!?" All three children questioned immediately.

"I didn't know that." Isabella said.

"Well, I asked the press and media to keep the news quiet because I didn't want you to know. I figured you wouldn't miss me as much if you didn't know what I was up to all the time. I was one of the most looked up to men in the Tri-State Area. Everybody loved me. I even managed to save the town from a devestating recession that would've cost everybody their homes."

"But...I don't understand it. If you were so successful, why did you leave Danville and resign as mayor?"

"Well, you see, back when I was running for my initial election, I realized early on that the people were corrupt and didn't care for the issues at hand. Danville wasn't as much as a safe-haven as you were led to believe, my dear. Crime rates were at their highest levels in over 30 years, buildings were crumbling, society was falling apart...it was chaos!"

"What happened?"

"I knew that the only way to make the people understand the horror that the town was in would be to show them the truth head-on. I started spending money like crazy, but it worked. The people all got a wake-up call. They knew their town was being run into a ditch so they all cast their votes for me, and in November of 2000, I became their new mayor, officially sworn in on January 21st, 2001."

"That's awesome, dad! It sounds like you made a big impact on those people's lives!"

"I did, sweetheart. I certainly did. Unfortunately, that was the highpoint of my career. It was all downhill from there."

"Why? What happened?"

"Well, as you could imagine, I barely had any money to my name. And I had topay off the expenses of my campaign. I spent over $250,000 on it."

"Well that doesn't sound like a lot, at least not when it comes to a rich guy such as yourself." Phineas commented, still holding Isabella tightly.

"Back in the 20th century, that actually meant something." Ferb said, reminding them of the lousy recession they were still in.

"He's right. But now I had the difficult task of having to pay that money back. You see, I took out many loans to cover the many expenses my campgin had covered. So I took out bank loans so I could pay the city off, and then I had to get a job on the side to pay off the banks. It was horrifying."

"No wonder you were always so tired when you came home." Isabella said. "I never really understood that."

"But when I was finally close to paying back the loans, things got even worse. I soon found myself spending money uncontrollably on High-Def plasma screen televisions I already had, fancy clothes, fancy food, fancy servants -- my worst fears were realized. I had developed a spending problem."

"Whoa..."

"But soon that spending problem became a gambling problem. I soon started getting into slot machines and poker, and even though I was good at them, I never knew when to quit. In 2 weeks, I had won over $300,000 in poker, and in just 1 day, I had lost it all, and thensome. Plus, I still had those banks loans to deal with. Eventually, I felt I had no choice, and I started, as they called it "Gambling in the Underground". It's a long story, and it's hard to explain, but it was a secret organization that specalized in giving out temporary loans. Unfortunately, I recklessly spent those loans on even more things for myself, and I completely blew off my payments!"

"Finally, there was a day where all of that came to haunt me. The organization found where I was living, and sent me an angry letter, saying that if I didn't have the $1.5 Million that I owed them in 48 hours, they would find where I lived and would kill my family!" Isabella gasped in horror, covering her mouth. "So I did the only thing I thought would work."

"You left us. You left and came here...that's why those weird men in suits smoking those cigarettes broke our house down after you left."

"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you before. You just wouldn't have understood."

"So...they didn't try to go after you after that?"

"They couldn't find me, but I did leave them a letter sincerely asking them not to harm you or your mother. I was shocked to learn that they had actually listened."

"What happened after that?"

"Well there was still the matter of the unpaid debts. I mean, they alwere waiting for me to make a false move and show up in town again. That's why I moved here. I initially got a job as a cafe manager, and during my time, I was easily able to make enough money to pay off their debts, and once I was done, they stopped going after me."

"Well that's great dad, but then, why didn't you come back to Danville?"

"Well, you must know how I became a teacher, right?" Isabella nodded. "Well, it's just that I loved what I was doing so much I was afraid to give it up. But I also knew that by staying here I would also be hurting you. And for that, I am sorry."

Isabella could tell that he _was_ truly sorry. The girl couldn't help herself, and soon found herself getting up and walking over to him. She gave him a big hug, knowing that he did care about her, and left them to protect them. "Dad, it's alright. It's OK."

"Isabella, I want you to know that I love you very much, and I didn't leave because I hate you."

"There are still some things that I don't understand, but now that I know the truth about why you left, I feel a little better about the whole situation. Of course, I do still wish that you didn't leave in the first place."

"So do I, dear. I regret it every single day. I can't reverse my decisions, though."

"I'm not mad at you, dad. Not anymore."

The two of them sat there, hugging each other like there was no tomorrow. It was a Father-Son reunion like none the world had ever seen. Isabella had mixed feelings about it all. She was still upset at him because he had left for so long and never came back, joy because she finally got the chance to meet him and now understands why he lef tin the first place. And the truth of it was, Adam felt exactly the same way.

"So...what happens now?" Isabella asked as the two pulled apart. "I mean, do you want me to move in with you or something?"

"And make you give up the wonderful life you're leading already? Nonsense. I could never ask for you to do that."

"Wonderful life? Wait, how did you--"

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. I mean, just the fact that you've kept those two friends of yours..." Isabella looked back at Phineas and Ferb, both giving a shy wave towards her. She waved back. "Even without me in your life, I knew you'd turn out pretty darn well."

"Thanks dad."

"But, since you guys are here, why don't you spend the night? It's getting late and I don't think it'd be safe for you to be walking the streets at this hour."

"Yeah...you're probably right." She checked her watch and saw that it was almost 9:00 at night. They had apparently been talking for several hours, to their utter surprise.

"Come on. Let's get you and your friend some nice, warm pajamas and get you situated in your beds. I have a lot of bedrooms in this mansion." He, Isabella, Phineas, and Ferb stood up and folloed Mr. Shapiro out one of their doors.

After they brushed their teeth, changed into nice, warm, clean pajamas, he showed them each to a big bedroom, complete with dresser draws, desks, windows, a private bathroom, and a king sized bed. While Phineas and Ferb were getting themselves ready, Adam decided to help his daughter get ready for bed, something he hasn't done in over 7 years. It was the best for him.

He tucked her into bed, gave her the teddy bear she brought with her, kissed her goodnight, and left the room. Isabella fell asleep almost instantly, the happiest she had been in a long time.

Meanwhile, Phineas was having a bit of difficulty sleeping himself. He figured that if he drew up some blueprints for more projects he could do over the summer, it might calm him down enough to fall asleep. He started out by drawing a new watch that could control time. BUt soon, he found himself drawing pictures of Isabella, his best friend. He even began writing poems about her, compulsively. It was torturing him, because he was so confused about his feelings for her and her feelings for him.

He knew that somehow he had to get his thoughts out. So, he started writing a letter. It was all over the place because his thoughts were over the place, but he believed he had gotten his message across. After he was finished, he walked into Isabella's room, which was located right next to his; he walked through the door located to the right of his bed. He saw her sleeping soundly, holding her teddy bear.

_Oh man. She looks so happy._ He thought to himself. _What if she reads this letter and I make her angry or something? I can't afford for that to happen!_ He was scared, but he knew that if he didn't deliver his letter, he'd go crazy thinking about it. He crept over to her slowly and placed the letter right next to her on her pillow. She sighed dreamily, with nothing but the thoughts of her and Phineas getting married filling her mind.

Phineas smiled warmly; he couldn't help but just stare at her for a while. _Wow, I-I never noticed just how cute she was._ Phineas had once told her indirectly that she was one of the cutest girls he had ever seen, but he didn't think it meant anything. **(The Chronicles of Meap)** He stroked her raven black hair, smiling even wider than he had smiled in a long time. Just being around her made him happy, but he never truly understood why. That's because he never understood the full concept of romance. **(That Sinking Feeling)** If there was one thing he knew clearly, it was this: He cared about Isabella a lot, enough to risk his life to make sure she would be safe in any and every life or death situation.

He leaned in and wrapped his arms around her tiny neck. He breathed deeply, resting his head on her back. He closed his eyes slowly and smiled wider, as did Isabella. Phineas stayed like that for quite some time, maybe even an hour or two. He didn't know, nor did he care. He was just happy to be with her right now. But he grew tired eventually so he eventually let go of her, kissed her lightly on her forehead, and left the room, leaving the letter with her.

Not long after he left her room did Isabella wake up. She stirred around for a little while before sitting up. She looked around and was surprised that nobody was there. "P-Phineas?" She knew that somebody had given her a hug but she wasn't sure who, though she had a pretty good idea. Needless to say, Isabella was completely confused as to what had happened or why. She became even more confused when she saw the envelope with the letter in it sitting on the pillow next to her.

"What's this?" She said to herself as she picked up the envelope opened it, and saw that inside was a letter. She read it to herself, and was surprised with who it was from.

_Dear Isabella, _

_I've been sitting her in bed for the past two hours, trying to get to sleep. But everytime I get even remotely close, you keep popping up in my mind! You're all I can think about right now, and I'm not really sure why. Look, when you first left me that message on my cellphone, pouring your heart out to me, I was shocked, to say the least. I had no idea what to think of any of it. All I wanted was for you to be safe because I care about you a whole lot. I don't really understand the concept of romance, so I don't really want to say or do anything that's going to make you hate me forever. But that doesn't mean I don't have feelings for you._

_There's so much about you to like. Your soft raven black hair, that adorable pink bow you wear all the time, your loving, caring, and enthusiastic personality, that funny & oh so cute voice you talk in, your catchphrase "Whatcha Doin'?", even your name is cute; Isabella. I think that's become my favorite girl name of all time. You're always there for me, and you're always there with me, helping Ferb and I with our summer projects. I never thought that it would be possible to care as much for just a friend as I do._

_I think one of the best thingsthat ever happened to me, other than getting an awesome stepbrother, was meeting you. I just don't know what I would do without you in my life. But I'm still so confused I don't know what I'm truly feeling. That's why, when we get back to Danville, I want to talk to you about it. I need to talk to you about it, so I can getting my feelings clear. And even though you might end up hating me afterwards, just know that I will always like you, I will always care about you, and we will always be friends._

_With lots of love,  
Phineas._

Isabella wiped away a tear and held the letter close to her heart. "He really does love me." She said to herself. It didn't seem like he was saying that in his letter, but she had a good feeling that that was what he meant to say. So, satisfied for now, she put the letter on her dresser, and snuggled back under the covers and fell asleep, still holding her teddy bear.

Phineas fell asleep just moments after Isabella did, now his thoughts filled with what would happen if he were to marry Isabella in the future. Although it was the first time a dream like this had actually come up in his mind, he turned out to like it a lot.

**End of Chapter 6!**

**Next Time: The big day has finally come: The Father/Child picnic in Danville. Will Isabella be able to handle it? Will Phineas be able to figure out his true feelings for her? And what about poor Doofenshmirtz & Vanessa?**

**Expected Update: You can check anytime after January 25th, but I probably won't be able to get it up until about January 29th. I have midterms coming up. Sorry.**


	8. Talking Really Helps

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Chapter 7: Talking Really Helps**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't get your hopes up for any good original songs. I might give it a shot, but it might not be that good.**

* * *

The three children woke up at 6:30 AM the next morning, which was quite a surprise to Adam, as he usually did not get up until at least 7:30 or 8. After they all had a little breakfast, Adam booked them the 8 AM train back to Danville so they could return home to their families. Needless to say, their families were happy to see them all in one piece, as were their other friends.

After she spent a little time relaxing at home, mostly reflecting on their adventure in New York, Isabella had to go finish setting up for the picnic with her Fireside Girl troop. They were a bit worried about her, considering she got upset and ran out the last time they saw her. But she assured them that she would be OK and that she wouldn't freak out on them again. Surprisingly enough, she held true to her promise. She didn't get upset while she was decorating the park, despite the fact that each of her troop members had brought along their dads.

By the time they had all finished decorating the park, it was close to opening up. It was almost 11, and the picnic was set to start at noon. Isabella took a seat on the big stage that was set up, reflecting on the past three days. Honestly, she was feeling much happier than she was back then. Aside from wanting to be able to participate in the picnic, all she wanted was to know why he had left her, because to her, that was him abandoning her. But now that she knew that it was absolutely nothing like that, she could finally be at peace with it.

She spent some time looking through an old book entitled "The History of Danville Mayors". She was focused on one page and one page only: the page that contained the information on her dad, Adam Shapiro. Isabella sat there for a long time. Time didn't even seem to exist to her, considering she was so happy now.

She didn't even notice that Phineas wasn't too far from her; he was near one of the tables that they had set up so the families could enjoy some food. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her; she was his best friend in the whole world, and she would always be. But ever since Isabella openly admitted to Phineas over a phone message that she had a huge crush on him, everything he once thought about their friendship changed. His mind was racing, and his father could see that.

"What's the matter, sport?" He asked Phineas.

"Oh, uh, nothing, dad. Everything's fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Because you've been staring at Isabella over there for the past hour. Is there something you need to get off your chest?"

"I...I think so." Phineas turned around to face his dad, and took a deep breath in. "Dad...a few days ago, right before Isabella left for the Big Apple...she left me a message on my cellphone, and..."

"Yes?"

"And...she-she kinda...she told me she was in love with me."

Lawrence's heart stopped for a moment. It seemed that Phineas was the only one that didn't know that Isabella had a crush on him, and in fact, he was. "She did, now?"

"Y-Yeah. And ever since then, my world perspective of her changed. I-I don't really know what to think of her. I mean, I even wrote a letter expressing my feelings and confusion and gave it to her!"

"And has she said anything about it?"

"No! And that worries me. It makes me think that she doesn't like me anymore."

"Oh I beg to differ, Phineas."

"Really?"

"Look, Phineas, Isabella's liked you for quite a while now. You two have known each other for so long, and have been such great friends. Are you really going to allow this to stop that?"

"I guess not. I mean, I don't want. But what if I say something so stupid and hurtful to her that she ends up hating me?"

"Well, my boy, you'll never know unless you try, right? Why don't you go talk to her about it? Believe me, you'll both feel a lot better afterwards."

Phineas looked back at Isabella once again, and was overcome with so many emotions: love, fear, anxiety, guilt, etc. He started sweating and even blushed lightly. _Wow! She really is cute. Not even the babies at the Danville nursery are as cute as Isabella is. _"Um, dad, I-I think I'm gonna go...talk to Isabella."

"You do that, son." Phineas walked slowly and casually towards Isabella, who was focused on her book.

He gulped and climbed up onto the stage, taking a seat right next to her. "Hey Isabella." He said quietly, not sure if he wanted her to hear him.

But she did. She put her book down and looked at Phineas, the two of them smiling. "Hi Phineas." SHe said in her usual sweet and charming voice, which made Phineas blush again. "A-Are you OK? You look a bit flustered."

"Su-Sure I'm fine. I'm just...I-I'm fine, Isabella. Really, I'm fine. I-Is it OK if I just sit here for a while?"

She blinked a couple of times. She wasn't sure what Phineas was thinking, but could tell he was really nervous and that just sitting there next to her would make him feel better. "Sure. Of course. I don't mind at all."

"Cool. Thanks." Phineas smiled in relief as Isabella picked her book back up and kept reading. Time passed and Phineas grew a bit more anxious with each passing minute. After a few moments, he compulsively rested his head on Isabella's arm, and smiled. The girl looked down at her best friend and saw this. Though she wasn't offended or upset, she was quite confused. He was smiling, which made Isabella even more confused.

"Um, Phineas, w-what are you doing?" She asked politely as she looked up at her. It was then that he realized that he was resting his head on her arm.

"Oh! Uh, sorry! I'm sorry!" He scrambled to pick his head up off her arm. "I'm sorry! I didn't realize--"

"It's OK. It's OK. I didn't say I didn't like it. I just asked why you were doing it."

"Oh. Um, yeah. Right. Well, I-I really don't know. I'm sorry. I guess I'm just so nervous." He found himself resting his head on Isabella's arm again, but this time, he was even more uncomfortable. "I'm just so...so confused right now! I mean, these past few days have been really confusing for me, and I'm just happy that you're happy again. And--"

At that point, Isabella had put her book down again, and wrapped her arms around Phineas. She knew instantly that he was getting upset, and she wanted him to calm down. "Come on, Phineas. Just relax." He started slowing his breathing, and relaxing his muscles. "There we go. It's OK, Phineas. Just calm down."

"I'm sorry, Isabella." Isabella let him go. He looked up at her lovingly as they both smiled warmly at each other.

"Is there something you want to talk about? 'Cause it seems to me that you have something on your mind."

"Well, yeah. I do. But I'm not exactly sure how to say it." He closed his eyes so he could get fully relaxed. He wasn't there yet, and he feared that by starting to collect his thoughts, he'd tense up again. "OK, here goes. First off...I got your cellphone message."

"I know. I think we've established that."

"And after that, everything for me changed. I always viewed you as a friend, and I always had feelings for you. But...I thought those would go away as I got older. But now...I'm not so sure I want them to go away."

"R-Really?"

"Of course. But, here's the thing. I-I always looked up to you as...a big sister."

"A...A big sister?"

"Yeah. Believe it or not, Candace doesn't seem to enjoy Ferb and I's summer projects as much as you, Buford, or Baljeet do."

"No!" Isabella said, with a hint of sarcasm.

"So...I guess I always looked to you for that big sister support, and every single time, you came through for me, and that was one of the many great things I liked about you."

She was a bit upset at first that Phineas viewed her as more of a sister than a girlfriend, but as he kept talking, she began to feel better about it.

"And then came this weekend. You know, you went to go find your father, and then...these many thoughts about you and me crept up on me. I was talking to Ferb, and he told me that you had liked me for a long time. And then when I finally found you, I was overcome with relief, because...if anything were to ever happen to you, if you were ever hurt in any way, I would never, ever live it down."

"Oh Phineas..." She reached her arm out, wrapped it around him, and pulled him close, as he wrapped his arms around her. "Nothing's going to happen to me. I'm not going anywhere. Not for a long time."

"I hope not. Because I'm finally starting to understand the concept of...love. I mean, I don't understand romance at all. But I think I know a thing or two about being able to love someone you truly care about. And no matter what happens in the future, no matter where our summers take us, just know one thing."

"What's that?"

"We'll always be friends. I wouldn't think about ever letting go someone as amazing as you." Suddenly, he opened his eyes and realized what he said. He pulled away from Isabella's grip and looked at her, scared of what she would say.

"You think I'm...I'm amazing?"

"Y-Yes. Yes I do. You-You're incredible, Isabella. No matter how difficult a challenge gets, you push through it and conquer it. Plus, you're _the_ most adorable girl I've ever seen in my entire life. Not even the babies at the nursery are as cute as you."

"Really!?"

"Yes, really." The two hugged once again, and Isabella even kissed Phineas lightly on his forehead. The two were even happier than they ever were. "Wow, Isabella. I-I wasn't sure how I would be able to get my feelings out. I feel like I'm rambling here."

"No, it's OK, Phineas. You're doing fine. Besides, I'm happy that you're just sitting here with me."

"Believe me, so am I. This is wonderful. I mean I've never felt so warm and cozy before." He tightened his grip on his friend and smiled wider. They sat there for what seemed like forever, when it was actually only about twenty minutes. Every moment that passed, Phineas felt much more comfortable just blurting out what he was trying to say all along. "Isabella, I love you!"

She opened her eyes widely and pulled away slightly from her best friend. They both stared at each other for a long time before Phineas spoke up again. "I do. I love you so much! You have no idea how much you mean to me! But...I-"

"What? What's the matter?"

"I just don't think I could pull off all of this romance crap that girls are after these days?"

"Phineas, what would give you that crazy--" She then remembered the summer before, when Phineas put together that romantic cruise for Baljeet and Mishti, and when Phineas said Meap was "The most adorable thing in the world". "Oh..."

"Yeah. I just don't want you to hate me just because I can't be romantic."

"I could never hate you. And I don't care that you're not romantic."

"You don't?"

"No. Sure, it would be nice to see a little bit of romance in our relationship, but in retrospect, I couldn't care less about it."

"But I thought you wanted me to be romantic with you after that cruise."

"I guess all I was looking for was the attention."

"Attention?"

"All I wanted was for you to notice me, and now that you have, all I could care about is spending time with you. That's all I ever wanted, Phineas."

"So you don't care that I probably can't be romantic to save my life?"

"Of course not. You're all the romance that I need! I love you!"

"I love you too!" He sighed a big sigh of relief as he and Isabella hugged again. Phineas was letting out some tears, but they were tears of joy. She kissed him on his cheek. "Thanks, that makes me feel so much better! Anyway, sorry you're going to have to miss out on the picnic again."

"That's alright. It doesn't really bother me that much anymore...at least not since I know the truth now."

"You know from my standpoint, your dad was pretty darn cool. And if you ask me, you deserve to enjoy this picnic at least once in your life."

"I know, but--"

"So, Isabella...I have a little surprise for you." He pointed into the streets where a car was pulling up in front of the park. The two looked in that direction, and Isabella was surprised to see a limo pulling up. It was a small limo, mind you, but still a limo.

"Phineas, w-what's going on?"

"Like I said, you deserve to enjoy this picnic at least once, so..." The limo doors opened up. The driver walked around to the passenger's side, opened the door, and revealed none other than Isabella's dad, Mr. Shapiro. Isabella was stunned and shocked. "I told your dad about the picnic today, and I begged him to come out and see you. I-I know how much this means to you."

"Phineas, you convinced my dad to come out of hiding...just to spend Father's Day with me?"

"That's right. Happy Father's Day, Isabella!"

Isabella looked back at her dad, and then at Phineas, several times. She was shell-shocked, surprised, baffled, but most of all...thrilled.

"Oh my go-thank you, Phineas!" She jumped into Phineas's arms once again, and this time, she kissed him right on his lips, surprising everybody around her. After that, she rushed right up to her dad, and the two of them hugged like they had not seen each other in 7 years. Well, technnically, they have, but...

Phineas was taken by surprise by the kiss. It was obvious Isabella had not planned to do that, but she was so overcome with joy and excitement that she couldn't control herself. The weird part though, to him of course, was that he didn't hate it. He may have actually liked it.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at Dr. Doofenshmirtz's lair, Vanessa was walking up to his room, with the flyer that Perry had given her regarding the picnic. She was nervous about it. Considering the two had gotten into a fight about it yesterday, she wasn't sure whether or not she should be talking to him at all.

But she nervously knocked on his door and waited for an answer. The evil scientist answered the door, looking dressed and ready to go to his L.O.V.E.M.U.F.F.I.N meeting. "Vanessa!? Oh, I-I wasn't expecting you."

"Hi dad." She said nervously, still holding the paper. "Listen, I know yesterday...didn't turn out the way we wanted it to. But, if-if you're willing...I'd like to give it one more shot."

Doofenshmirtz was stunned at what she said. "O-Oh, really? Y-You really want to? B-But I can't! I mean, I-I have a meeting to get to. I don't really have time to--" Truth was, he didn't want to leave. He was so desperate for a successful Father/Daughter bond with Vanessa. "Well, what did you have in mind?"

SHe handed him the paper. He was already familiar with it, so he wasn't shocked by it. He _was_ surprised, though. "The annual Fireside Girls Father/Child picnic? Vanessa, are you sure about this?"

"Well...no, but we've tried nearly everything else, and even though I really..can't stand you sometimes, you're the only dad I've got, and I don't want to lose you."

"Oh Vanessa..." The two hugged each other. "Look, I know we may disagree on a lot of things, but you're still my daughter, and I love you. Now come on, this thing starts at noon, according to the paper. That leaves us about 20 minutes to get there."

"But what about your meeting?"

"Aww, screw them, honey! They don't like me anyway! All that matters today is that I get to spend some quality time with my daughter." And so the two left, hand in hand, on their way to the most festive place in Danville for today. Finally, a good Father's Day was waiting for them.

**End of Chapter 7!**

**Almost done! Wow, didn't expect to get it done this quickly!**

**Next Time: The picnic officially begins!**

**Expected Update: Again, check anytime during midterm week, January 25th through January 29th. **

**Oh, and as a special A/N, new Phineas and Ferb episodes are back on Disney XD starting February 6th!**


	9. The Picnic

**Phineas and Ferb**

**Un-Happy Father's Day**

**Chapter 8: The Picnic**

**Disclaimer: ****_Phineas and Ferb_ does not belong to me. It belongs to the two geniuses _Dan Povenmire _and _Jeff "Swampy" Marsh. _Keep up the good work, gentlemen! Also don't get your hopes up for any good original songs. I might give it a shot, but it might not be that good.**

* * *

_**There's two things I know for sure:  
She was sent here from heaven  
And she's daddy's little girl**_.

The clock struck noon and the festivities officially began. Everybody began engaging in the wonderful activities that had been set up for the picnic. There were carnival games, such as "Test Your Strength", "Ring Toss" the "Dunk Tank", and those kinds of games where you squirt water into a guy's mouth to win a prize, live entertainment, snacks, and fireworks. Don't forget the fireworks.

**_As I drop to my knees by her bed at night  
She talks to Jesus, and I close my eyes  
And I thank God for all of the joy in my life  
Oh but most of all..._**

Since she assumed that the picnic was originally Phineas and Ferb's idea, Candace was very passionate about not participating in it, like she has done every year, but, after hearing about Isabella's story, and how she was never even allowed to partake in it because she didn't even have a dad, Candace was touched. She realized that it's not worth it for her to miss out on such a great festival just because it was Phineas and Ferb who organized it. (The truth of the matter, though, was that it was not their idea, and once she did figure that out, she felt very, very stupid). Every year she had missed it, but when she found out the truth, she immediately apologized to her brothers for yelling at them and accusing them of it, and received a severe verbal lashing from her mother & father. (**Yes, as you can tell, I despise Candace's character.**)

But this year, she was very eager to enjoy the festivities with Lawrence.

**_For butterfly kisses after bedtime prayer  
Sticking little white flowers all up in her hair_**

This year, there was also an attraction that allowed kids under the age of 12 to have a ride on a small horse. Even though Isabella has already ridden a horse (**The Magnificent Few**) it has always been her dream to ride on with her dad standing by her side. And today, she finally got her wish come true.

**_Walk beside the pony, daddy. It's my first ride  
I know the cake looks funny, daddy, but I sure tried  
Oh, with all that I've done wrong  
I must've done something right  
To deserve a hug every morning  
And butterfly kisses at night_**

After the pony ride, Isabella and her dad decided to get their picture taken together in a photo was to commemorate this wonderful day they had together. Deep down, Adam knew that he would not get many more like this with his daughter, so he wanted to have something to remember her by, and Isabella had the exact same thoughts.

Meanwhile, at the edge of the park, Father/Daughter duo Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Vanessa were about to enter the park to enjoy the picnic. While both of them were uneasy about the whole picnic thing, Doofenshmirtz was determined to make this Father's Day special for the two of them. They played all of the carnival games that there were to offer, and while they were playing, Dr. D couldn't help but reminise on the wonderful life Vanessa has led so far, remembering all the birthdays he threw her, all the bonding they did, everything.

**_Sweet 16 today  
She's looking like her mama  
A little more everyday_**

After everybody had a little bit of time to enjoy all the picnic had to offer, it was time for the regularly scheduled picnic activities, and the first one was the annual Father/Daughter Egg Toss. Everybody took a part of it, and despite the fact that there were various messes involved, everyone had a wonderful time, including Candace (surprisingly), and Vanessa. Isabella & her father won that event, though nobody really cared that there was a winner. They were all just there to have some fun.

The next activity on the agenda was performances by comedians Jeff Foxworthy and Jeff Dunham. Both comedians were hillarious and everybody loved them. While Phineas and Ferb weren't responsible for the picnic itself, they helped out with the entertainment department, since last year, all they got was Rosie O' Donnell, Chris Rock, and Larry the Cable Guy.

**_One part woman, the other part girl  
To perfume and make-up from ribbons and curls  
Trying her wings out in a great big world  
But I remember..._**

After the entertainment portion, it was time for for the annual Father/Daughter buffet. Every kind of food in existance was included: pizza, hamburgers, hotdogs, corn dogs, pork chops, chicken legs, chicken nuggets, etc. Everybody went over to the buffet and scarfed down nearly everything on the table, except for Doofenshmirtz, who simply stuck with the corn dogs for some reason. Apparently, he was now addicted to them.

**_Butterfly kisses after bedtime prayer  
Sticking little white flowers all up in her hair  
You know how much I love you, daddy  
But if you don't mind  
I'm only gonna kiss you  
On the cheek this time_**

Everything was so perfect. Isabella was finally able to see her dad after all these years, Doofenshmirtz & Vanessa were finally able to bond for the first time in so long, and Phineas finally understood Isabella's crush on him.

**_Oh, with all that I've done wrong  
I must've done something right  
To deserve her love every morning  
And butterfly kisses at night._**

The hours seemed to pass by like the wind. The carnival games were running out of prizes to give out, the buffet table was running out of food, and the couples were running out of patience when it came to the "horrible" performances by Consuela, who was only there for the free food instead of entertaining people there. All the while, Phineas and Ferb hung back from the action, watching everybody enjoy themselves from the sidelines. Despire it being called a "Father/Child" picnic, it was designed primarily for Fathers and Daughters, which was stupid. I mean, they might as well have just called it a "Father/Daughter" picnic, right?

The last thing on the agenda was the annual "Father/Child closing dance", which was when they were get someone to perform for them while all the fathers and kids danced to it. This year, they got Bob Carlisle to perform the song "Butterfly Kisses" for them, and as everybody took a spot on the ground and danced to it, they couldn't help but feel so much closer to each other. Vanessa was finally starting to believe there was a chance that she could rekindle the bond she lost with her dad, Isabella was finally enjoying the picnic with her dad, something she has wanted for so long, and Candace was finally thinking about something other her brothers.

**_All the precious time  
Like the wind, the years go by  
Precious butterfly  
Spread your winds and fly_**

Time seemed to stand still for everybody. Nothing but joy and happiness filled the air of the Danville park. Even as the picnic ended and everybody was about to go their seperate ways, they still felt the effects of the festivities. It was all so wonderful.

"I wish you didn't have to go." But now it was time for everybody to go home. While Phineas, Ferb, Isabella, and the Fireside Girls decided to hang back to clean up the park, their fathers returned back home, including Mr. Shapiro.

"I know, Isabella. But I have to. I had to cancel classes for today, so now I owe all the children back in New York an explaination."

"But what if I never see you again? I mean, finally, after all these years, I get to spend an entire day with you, and all of a sudden, you have to leave!?"

"I understand you're upset, but I promise, I'll come back and visit you on your birthday. And on the holidays."

"Promise?"

"I promise?"

Isabella looked at him endearingly as she held up her right pinky. "Pinky swear?"

He looked at her back and smiled warmly, holding up his pinky too and interlocking with hers. "Pinky swear." He hugged her once more and kissed her on her cheek before he departed to his car, and drove off back to New York City.

**_She'll change her name today  
She'll make a promise  
And I'll give her away_**

She waved goodbye as she watched her dad drive away into another state. Phineas, Ferb, and her friends walked up to her to comfort her as she smiled. Her dad might be leaving her again, but at least this time, she got to spend a day with him. Phineas edged up to her and hugged her, just in case she was still hurting inside, and she was. But now she also had glee inside as well.

**_Standing in the bride room just staring at her  
She asks me what I'm thinking  
And I say I'm not sure  
_****_I just feel like I'm losing my baby girl._**

"Do you feel better now, Isabella?" Phineas asked his best friend.

She looked down at him, smiled, and hugged him back. Everyone around her aww'ed. "Yes. Yes I do, Phineas. Thank you. Thanks for bringing my dad and I together for this wonderous occasion. I-I can't believe you did all this for me."

"There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you, Isabella. And I'm glad to see you smiling again." Isabella's eyes started to water up as Phineas leaned in and kissed her on the cheek, to which she giggled.

"Well, that's it, then." Adyson interrupted them, walking over to her troop leader and giving her a new patch. "You've officially earned your "Father/Daughter Picnic" patch."

"Finally." As the two parted, Adyson put the patch on Isabella's sash. "I've been waiting for years to get this."

"And don't forget about your "I Got Kissed by a Cute Boy" patch." Gretchen added, handing Adyson another patch, who then proceeded to put on their troop leader's sash. Isabella and Phineas both beamed.

"So...Isabella..."

"Yes, Phineas?"

"Do you...wanna do something tomorrow?"

"You mean, like, hang out or something?"

"Sure. Just the two of us."

"Um...OK. That sounds like fun."

"Why don't I come over, say, 9:00 tomorrow?"

"Alright. I'll see you then, Phineas." And with that they hugged once more before Isabella left to return home with her mom. "Bye!"

"See you tomorrow, Isabella!" Phineas called back. As he watched Isabella leave, his heart was filled with all kinds of feelings. The biggest one, though, was love. Deep down, from the bottom of his heart, he loved her. Even if it wasn't a romantic, candle-lit dinner kind of love, it was still love, and that was all Isabella wanted. And now, she finally got it. All of her dreams have come true. She finally got to meet her dad and spend the day with him, and she has a new perspective of her best friend.

**_She leaned over_**

**_And gave me butterfly kisses with her mama there  
Sticking little white flowers all up in her hair_**

Everybody went home after that. The sun set below the horizon, projecting such beautiful colors across the Tri-State Area. The people who probably enjoyed it the most was Vanessa & Dr. Doofenshmirtz.

"Hey dad, thanks for a wonderful day." Vanessa said to her father. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I actually had a good time today. I'm so glad you didn't give up on us."

**_Walk me down the aisle daddy.  
It's just about time_**"I never would've given up on us. Even if this didn't work, I would've tried something else next year. You mean so much to me, Vanessa, and I didn't want to lose a chance to bond with you." He turned to the sky, where he saw his nemesis flying through the air on his jetpack. Perry caught sight of the doctor and tipped his hat off to him. "Thank you, Perry the Platypus!"

**_Does my wedding gown look pretty, daddy?  
Daddy don't cry  
Oh with all that I've done wrong  
I must've done something right_**

And so, everybody was now home, relaxing after such a wonderful day at the park. Everyone was joyous.

**_To deserve her love every morning  
And butterfly kisses_**

Phineas and Ferb both returned home and immediately changed into their pajamas. After which, they slowly crept into bed, and fell asleep. While Ferb's mind was completely blank, Phineas couldn't help but think of Isabella the entire night.

Across the street, Isabella couldn't help but think of Phineas the entire night.

**_I couldn't ask God for more  
'Cause this is what love is  
And I know I gotta let her go  
But I'll always remember_**

**_Every hug in the morning  
And butterfly kisses..._**

**Disclaimer: _Butterfly Kisses_ by Bob Carlisle**

And with that, everybody in the Tri-State Area drifted off into a wonderous sleep.

**The End.**

**I hope you liked it. And I'm so thrilled that you've nominated this story for "Best Phineas and Ferb story", hotpink72!**


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